Kingdom Hearts 3: Final Stand
by Rom12.2-2Cor4.6
Summary: This is my take on KH3... after DDD... Warning there will be spoilers to DDD in the story. Sora and his friends are getting ready for the final showdown with the thirteen darknesses, but now they need to gather their lights around them. Join them on a quest to find the missing lights and to stop Xehanort! Rated T for action violence
1. Chapter 1: The Mysterious Tower

I do not own any of the characters from Kingdom Hearts, Disney, Final Fantasy, or other shows/games/and movies

All rights belong to Disney, Square Enix, Hasbro, Hang Zhou StarQ, Nelvana/ BBC One, Nintendo, Hanna–Barbera Productions, Dreamworks, Focus on the Family, FilmDistrict, TriStar Pictures, Warner Brothers, 4kids Entertainment, Mirage Studios, and DiC Entertainment

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**Kingdom Hearts 3: Final Stand**

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**Chapter 1: Mysterious Tower**

The stars glittered in the sky above the mysterious tower as the tall red- headed girl stared out into space. She closed her eyes as a tear slid down her cheek. A face appeared in her mind, the face was of a boy her own age with brown spiky hair and a silly smile on his face.

"Hey Kairi!" Kairi turned and a silver haired boy came and sat down beside her.

"Hey Riku what's up," Kairi asked. Riku shrugged and she turned her gaze back to the open space. "Riku, I was thinking about Sora; when do you think he will come back?"

Riku shrugged, "I really don't know Kairi, but I'm sure it will be soon, he promised me that he would come back once he found the answers he sought." Another boy with fiery red spiky hair came up behind them and dropped down on the other side of Kairi. "Nice to see you Lea," Riku said.

Lea laughed and scratched his head, "I heard you two talking about Sora, don't worry he'll be back soon, and he'll be in top form; got it memorized!" Kairi giggled and Lea grinned widely, "Oh and Master Yen Sid wanted to talk to all of us." The three of them got up and walked towards the tower.

Kairi had been training under Master Yen Sid for almost nine months. Her red hair was shoulder length. She wore a hot pink turtle- neck with purple stripes along the outside of the sleeves, covered by a sleeveless hot pink dress that went down to about the top of her thighs, under it were hot pink leggings with a violet stripe down the sides, she had knee high white combat boots with purple laces, on her right shoulder jutted up a small light pink and dark violet piece of armor, and on the armor was a dark violet ring with a silver button in the middle.

Riku was the only master of the group and had short- cut silver hair. He wore a yellow short-sleeve shirt covered by a black vest. He had dark blue pants and black shoes with yellow laces.

Lea was the oldest of the three; he had long spiky red hair. He had a polo shirt the same shade as his hair and an black scarf wrapped around his neck and black pants with red shoes.

Master Yen Sid had been preparing the three of them, mainly Kairi and Lea, for an evil that he knew was on its way. They all were wielders of the legendary Keyblade. Riku's was called The Way to Dawn and it kind of looked like his former sword, but it was slimmer and had a wing of an angel on the top of the blade. The keychain was the symbol of the Heartless without the x in the middle.

Kairi's was called Destiny's Embrace and was orange and became a darker orange as you went up the blade, it was wrapped in khaki colored vines and the blade was made up of yellow, orange, pink, and purple flowers. The handle had a guard that was the beginning of the vines around the blade on one side and looked like a wave of the sea on the other side. Its keychain was a paopu fruit.

Lea was the oldest of the three. He was a newer Keyblade wielder. His blade was called Blaze Bond, its blade was like a stream of fire it came out of the handle and curled up at the top it was yellow at the bottom, and the top was a dark orange the handle looked identical to Lea's other weapon, the chakrams. The Keychain actually was a chakram.

As they walked up the tower's long spiral staircase Kairi's mind once again turned to Sora; his trademark smile burned into her memory and she remembered the bright look on his face right before he left for his Mark of Mastery exam. She summoned her Keyblade and looked at the paopu fruit keychain and her mind turned back to the drawing she and Sora had done on the wall of the secret place back on their home world.

She put away the Destiny's Embrace and the three went inside Master Yen Sid's study. The Master was in there; in his long dark blue robe and tall hat that was the same color with yellow stars and moons on it. His long gray beard stretched down to his waist and his thick gray eyebrows always made him look angry. But the three were shocked to see three others in there too. One was a short mouse in red and yellow attire, another was a duck in different shades of blue, and the last was a tall dog that wore a green shirt, yellow pants, and a tall yellow hat.

Kairi smiled broadly, "Mickey, Donald, and Goofy!" She ran to them and hugged her old friends. Lea came over and gave the three a high-five. Riku shook their hands.

"How is the training going," Mickey asked.

Lea scratched his head, "Pretty well, all things considered."

Master Yen Sid gruffly stated, "Now that you are done saying hello I would like to address the matter at hand." Everyone turned to the master. "During the last few months Xehanort has been gathering his forces around him, mostly including copies of himself in different forms. He is preparing for the final battle. It is time to bring together the warriors needed to defeat him. They will not be easy to find or to bring together. At this moment I am sending Riku, Lea, and Mickey to Radiant Garden; Leon has been monitoring Xehanort's affairs and I need you to gather all the information you can. Kairi, Donald, and Goofy I am sending out to look for Sora." Kairi gasped, this is what she had been waiting for since she came here.

Lea leaned over and whispered to Riku out of the side of his mouth, "He just said the magic words!" Riku silently laughed.

Donald cocked his head, "How are we supposed to find him? There are many worlds out there that he could have gone to and some we might not even know."  
Everyone nodded in silent agreement.

"I am leaving that up to you," Master Yen Sid stated, "there is a reason why I chose the three people who probably know Sora the best for this assignment." Kairi glanced over at Riku who nodded in agreement. Yen Sid turned his gaze to Lea, Riku, and Mickey, "You three take your gliders and leave as soon as you are ready." The three bowed and walked out.

He turned back to the three that were left; Donald and Goofy straightened up as his gaze shifted to them, "Donald, Goofy prepare the gummi ship and wait for Kairi. Kairi I would like you to visit the three fairies; they will have some information for you." The magician and knight left and Kairi went into the room next door.

Inside were the three good fairies, Flora in red, Fawna in green, and Meriwether in blue; "Hello Kairi dear, Master Yen Sid sent you?"

"He said you would have some information for me before I leave."

They nodded to each other, "Kairi, we gave you those clothes you are wearing when you first got here but we didn't tell you of all the abilities that come with them." Kairi glanced down at her clothes. "Those clothes have powers like Sora's."

She gasped in delight, "You mean I have drive forms too?!" The fairies nodded and an orb appeared in front of the Keyblade wielder.

Fawna said, "Now dear grab the orb." Kairi reached out and was surrounded in a flash of light.

She was lifted off the ground and then the light subsided. The fairies gasped in delight and Kairi turned to a mirror and saw her outfit had changed colors. Her outfit was now a violet cat suit with long sleeves, a skirt, and a V- neck, under it was a gold tank top and leggings, and her boots were now violet with black laces; she also held a second Keyblade. The blade was purple with a green stem rising up it; on the end was a red rose in full bloom. The guard was leaves at the top and was gold on both sides and the keychain was a rose in full bloom; the name Divine Rose appeared in Kairi's mind.

"This is your Warrior Form, the other forms will have to be earned later on," Meriwether said. Kairi's clothes flashed again and they were back to normal and she only had one Keyblade.

She went up and hugged the fairies, "Thank you so much!" She then turned and dashed back out. Master Yen Sid was waiting for her.

As she passed him, his hand grabbed her shoulder, she turned to him and he slowly warned her, "Kairi, you are closer to Sora than anyone and you are the least experienced so you will most likely be a target; Sora would never let anything happen to you but, you must fend for yourself as well. For extra help until you find Sora here is a summon gem." Kairi took the gem; it was purple with a yellow bat- signal on it. "Now go on and complete your mission but don't come back here go to Radiant Garden."

She nodded, "Yes sir, bye!" She ran out and jumped into the gummi ship.

Once inside Jiminy Cricket hopped onto her shoulder and asked, "So where to?"

Donald shrugged, "Who knows, but I think we should go by the Coliseum first because that would be a great place to train." Goofy nodded and the gummi ship zipped off through interspace.

* * *

The armored boy flew through interspace on his glider. He headed towards a lone world that he knew was called Twilight Town. The boy slowed down to a stop before the world and said out loud, "You know my friend I still think you should tell me what this is all about!"

Then a voice that had been in his head for nine months said, "_Well you will find out soon enough_ _Sora. You have trusted me this far, so please don't stop now. And one thing if you do stop I won't stop nagging you about it till you do it!"_ Sora sighed and flew to the world.

"You know I wish you would at least tell me your name so I wouldn't have to keep calling you, my friend," Sora stated.

"_As I just said, everything will be revealed soon_!"

As Sora flew to Twilight Town he couldn't help thinking he might have been a little crazy. The day after he left to train on his own this voice, that seemed familiar, had started talking to him in his head. It had guided him the entire nine months to different worlds. Most of which he had never been to before. The voice had never let him down though, Sora had come to train alone and the voice led him to places that he could train at, and the voice had let him do all his training on his own without giving any advice.

Two nights ago the voice was quieter than usual; and Sora had asked, "Hey is something wrong?"

The voice nearly screamed, "_I must go back, I must help! It is time!_"

This woke Sora up and he groaned, "Yea, something is wrong. Your screaming nearly damaged my brain!"

The voice was quiet then, but now it was back and leading him to Twilight Town.

Sora landed and his silver and red armor changed into his black pants, shirt, and jacket. The shirt had a red trapezoid on it and the pants had two crossing yellow straps and had a red bag that hung down on the side. He wore black gloves that had a yellow stripe on the bottom and had two crossing white lines on them. Around his neck was a chain that had a crown emblem. And he had black, yellow, and red shoes. His light brown hair was spiked in all directions and his bright blue eyes stared in delight at the familiar town, as usual, blanketed in twilight.

He thought, "Well I'm here so let's do this thing!"


	2. Chapter 2: Twilight TownCastle Oblivion

Alrighty then…. I would like to thank KHLegacy for reviewing and KHLegacy, ,and for favoriting! FYI Kairi's first drive form is her Warrior Form. This is the only form that is extremely close to Sora's, the others will have significant differences.

Again… I do not own any of the characters or worlds in this story!

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**Chapter 2: Twilight Town/ Castle Oblivion **

Sora walked toward the train station in the peaceful town.

Then from behind him a sweet voice rang out, "Hey Sora!" He turned and two boys and a girl ran up to him.

He gave his trademark smile and said, "Hey Hayner, hey Pence, hey Olette!" Olette, who had called to him, had dark brown hair that was a little spiked on the sides and the rest hung down, her green eyes sparkled at the sight of her friend. She wore an orange thick- strapped tank- top that was a burnt orange with white hibiscus flowers on it, kaki shorts, and long orange socks with a thin white stripe on the top and white shoes with yellow lining and black bottoms and laces.

Hayner had short spiky blonde hair and brown eyes, he wore a black tank- top with sloppy skull and crossbones on it, which was covered by a short tan vest, he had on his usual camouflage pants, and his camo shoes with white on the tips.

Pence was a bit bigger than the other two and his almost black- brown hair was spiked up and held up by a black headband that has fringed by stripes of white, he had a purple bandana around his neck, he wore a white shirt covered by a red basketball jersey that said dogstreet and had a funny looking dog trying to get a bone on it, he wore blue jeans, and blue shoes with white down the middle and black around the bottoms. He was holding three sea- salt ice- cream bars.

"How ya been Sora," Pence asked?

Sora smiled, "I've been pretty good, how about you guys?"

Hayner shrugged, "Well school is almost here and summer has gone by a little too fast for my taste." Sora laughed. "Hey Sora, we were about to go up to the top of the clock tower and eat ice- cream, you wanna come?"

Sora didn't answer but the voice told him, "_Go on, they're your friends. I can wait a bit longer._"

"Alright," Sora said. Olette ran back and came back a moment later with another ice- cream bar. They went up a few staircases up to the top of the tower; they sat on the edge and let their legs hang down over the edge. Sora had been to TwilightTown before but had never done this. He ate his ice- cream slowly and let the salty, sweet taste fill his mouth. Once he had finished eating he stared out over town.

Ever since he had gotten up there he had been having this feeling that he had done this before on many occasions and he couldn't shake it. Then as he was sitting there he suddenly had a flash of memories. He knew they weren't his, but they felt like his.

He saw Hayner, Pence, and Olette sitting next to him on the tower like they had been just a moment before but this was different and Sora knew it. Then it changed and instead of the three TwilightTown kids there was only one of them. They were both in Organization XIII cloaks; Sora recognized one, it was Lea's Nobody, Axel.

Then the image changed back to reality and Olette was saying, "Sora, hey Sora, are you ok?"

Sora shook the vapors out of his head and replied, "Sorry bout that, I zoned out for a minute there."

"Zoned Out," Hayner repeated, "you literally were like out cold with your eyes open! Something else happened, would you mind telling us."

"_I think it's alright_," the voice said, "_They might know something about that mysterious flash_."

Sora thought, "Wait! You don't know what that was? I was hoping that my helpful voice in my head would know, since he seems to know everything else about everything." The voice chuckled.

"So, are you gonna tell us or not," Pence asked?

Sora turned to them and nodded, "Well it was like a flashback but I know it had never happened to me. There were two flashes, the first one was I was sitting with you three and we were sitting here eating ice- cream like we just were. I know it wasn't mine because this is the first time I have ever done this."

"Totally weird, what was the second one?"

"Well," Sora continued, "the second one was here too but there was only one person. It was the guy with the red hair who kidnapped Kairi. His name is Axel

The three were silent for a moment until Pence broke the silence, "Hey, could you see yourself in the flash or was it from your point of view?"

"Mine."

"Well, I think I might know something. Not long before we met you, Donald, and Goofy I remember Axel and some other boy who resembled you would come here every day and they would eat ice- cream." Sora nodded.

"_Hey_," the voice said, "_you need to head over to the old mansion right outside of town_."

Sora repeated, "Hey I need to head on over to that old mansion right outside of town. You guys don't mind if I split and head over there?"

Olette cocked her head, "Why, there is nothing there."

"I just have this feeling like I need to go there."

"Go on Sora; if you find anything tell us. And if we figure out anything more about that girl we will tell you right off."

The brunette stood, gave them his trademark smile, and left. The voice led him all the way to the gate of the mansion. Sora looked up at a window that was covered with white curtains; he knew that was where Naminé had once stayed.

He walked inside and the voice said, "_Alright Sora, head upstairs and to Naminé's old room_." Sora went as he was told and was soon standing in the pure white room with drawings hung on the walls. One caught Sora's attention. It was of Axel and his Nobody Roxas.

"Hey, maybe I was seeing one of Roxas's memories?"

The voice agreed, "_That is a possibility. But we need to get going; hold out your Keyblade towards the window_." Sora did as he was bid and the end of his blade lit up and shot a beam of light at the window. The curtains parted and a white door appeared.

"That is where we need to go?"

"_Yep_."

Sora stepped through and was in a vaguely familiar white hall.

"_Welcome back to Castle Oblivion, Sora_."

"Castle Oblivion huh."

Sora stepped forward and was surprised to see a figure materialize right in front of him. The figure was dressed in a sky blue Organization XII coat, and, based on the shape of its figure, it was a girl. She was tall, her face was covered by the hood but Sora could guess she was about eighteen or nineteen, possibly twenty.

The girl spoke, "Hello Sora." Her voice was sweet and sounded mature. But as she spoke the voice inside him gasped.

Sora thought, "Wait, you know her?"

"_Yes! I know her!_" The voice was so excited Sora could almost feel it.

The girl giggled, "Yes, Sora we know each other."

"Wa…wa…wait," Sora stuttered, "you can hear the voice in my head?" She nodded. "Hey what is your name?" He reached out and tried to put a hand on her shoulder but his hand passed right through her.

She spun around, "I can't reveal my name yet, and sorry about not telling you but this is only a projected image of myself. I am using every bit of energy I can to produce it, and where I am I have even less energy so it won't last long."

"_Where are you_," the voice asked in earnest?

She turned from him, "I… am in the realm of darkness." The voice gasped. "Sorry, it was the only way I could save our friend from being completely dragged into darkness." She started to fade from view.

"_NO WAIT! DON'T GO YET_!" She sadly waved and disappeared from sight. The voice sighed, "_I missed her so much, but I am glad I got to see her. And now I know where to find her._"

Sora looked at his feet, "Hey, I'm sorry my friend. But once this is over I will help you anyway I can to find her."

"_Thank you so much Sora, now let's get back to business. I need you to go two hallways over and I'll tell you more when you get there._"

"Alright," Sora sighed, "I'm going. But I want to know more about you, that girl, and that friend she mentioned." He went through one white hall into another. The one that voice had directed him to was lined with the same emblem all down both sides. It was hearts with spikes on the bottom and sides of the bottom. Sora was sure he had seen it somewhere before.

"_Sora_," the voice interrupted his train of thought, "_I need you to find the emblem that is different that the rest. It will have a small upside-down V right at the bottom of the heart_."

Sora laughed loudly, "Good thing you told me what the difference is. Kairi was right in saying that I am the worst spot- the- diff game player ever. But even with you telling me what the difference is I might just miss it."

The voice started laughing hard, "_Hey I have been inside you for thirteen years, and I know about your spot- the- diff trouble. I will point it out for you if you miss it._"

"Fair enough." Slowly Sora walked down the hallway, looking at emblems on both sides. They all looked the same; as he started to reach the end of the hall he looked to his left and there was the one he had been looking for. "Yea, found it!"

"_Good going Sora!_" Then the girl reappeared in front of him. "_Your back!_"

"Yes, I finally got enough energy to bring back my image. And looks like I was just in time; unless I grant you the ability, you can't open this chamber at all."

"_Can you grant the ability in this state_?"

She nodded and held out her hand. Sora was shocked to see a blue and sliver Keyblade appear in her hand; she pointed it straight at Sora's chest. It glowed brightly and so did Sora. A stream of light shot from the Keyblade and hit the brunette in the chest.

"Now Sora, I don't have much time but I have granted you control of this castle for a short time."

Sora's eyes grew wide, "You can do that?"

"Yes, I created Castle Oblivion. I, and now you, can do anything in here." She began to fade from view. "One more thing, take good care of him; as you have done for the last thirteen years. I am counting on you…" With that last request she faded from sight.

"_Don't worry, I will find you and I will bring you back from the realm of darkness…Aqua_." Sora was silent, as he heard the voice sniffle.

"I promise I will care for him; and I also promise you my friend that we will free Aqua, right, from the realm of darkness."

"_Thank you Sora, Aqua and I will never forget this_." Sora held out his Keyblade to the different emblem. The emblem split in two and a door to a hidden chamber opened.

* * *

As the gummi ship flew away from Yen Sid's tower in the direction of Olympus Coliseum Kairi felt something in her heart.

"Donald, turn this ship around, we need to head to TwilightTown. That's where Sora is."

Donald crossed his wings, "How would you know?"

"Uh," Kairi stuttered, "we kind of have a special connection. And I feel that he is in TwilightTown."

"Uh Donald," Goofy put in, "I think we should listen to her."

"Hey, at least we aren't just going on nothing, we at least have a place to start this way. And you really don't know how long it would take to find him if we just search blindly."

"Oh, fine," Donald admitted with a groan. The ship turned and headed towards the familiar world.

During the flight Kairi went to a room that had been given to her during travels and thought about Sora. Nobody knew but her and Sora how close they really were.

It had been one month since she had started training with Master Yen Sid. She had some spare time one day and so she went by herself outside the tower and sat behind a few bushes to think. As she had been sitting there an armored figure on a glider flew by. She was about to run as he came up to her but her called for her by name and she instantly recognized the voice as Sora's. He removed his armor and hugged her.

She asked him, "I thought you had gone off to train, no one was expecting you back this early?"

He reached into his large pocket and pulled out a strangely shaped package, "There was something I needed to do, that I should have done already. I couldn't put it off any longer Kairi." He unwrapped the package and there was a paopu fruit. Kairi gasped as he held it out to her.

"Sora, you really mean it?"

"Yes Kairi, I do." Then right there behind the bushes, in front of Yen Sid's tower Sora and Kairi shared a paopu fruit. Since then Kairi could almost feel what Sora was feeling, and now she was searching for him and it was leading her to him.

They leapt off the gummi ship onto the familiar world. As they walked down the streets Kairi's feeling in her heart kept getting stronger. She knew what direction to go in but all she saw in that direction was walls. Then someone put a hand on Donald's shoulder, making him leap into the air.

"Hey, what's the big idea," Donald yelled?! They all turned and saw their old friends Hayner, Pence, and Olette.

"Sorry Donald, hey Goofy, hey Kairi long time no see," Pence chuckled. Kairi waved. "Hey, are you three looking for Sora?"

Kairi's eyes widened, "How did you know?"

"He was here earlier; if you're looking for him he is in the old mansion right outside of town. We can take you there if you want."

"Thanks you guys," Goofy said. They followed the TwilightTown crew through the city and out a hole in a wall. They were soon at the gates of the mansion.

"Hey," Hayner asked, "can we come with you. Sora didn't really tell us much and we would like to see what it was he was looking for in there."

Goofy shrugged, "I guess so." Then the six of them took off through the manor; while everyone was searching the ground floor for Sora, Kairi went upstairs. She felt her heart led her to a certain room. It was white, with drawings plastered all over the walls.

"Hey guys! I found it!" The others came running up and they saw the curtains in the room flutter apart and a white door appear. "This room," Kairi stuttered, "I know it."

She shook the vapors from her head. And went through the white door with the others following. They appeared inside Castle Oblivion; Kairi was almost certain she had been there before. She looked around the white hall and remembered the name of the place.

"This is… one of Organization XIII's castles, the one Namine was created and stationed at; it is called Castle Oblivion."

A sweet voice rang out behind them, "That is correct princess." They sharply turned and the same girl Sora had seen materialized before them.

"Who are you," Hayner sputtered, "are you a ghost?"

She laughed, "No, my name is Aqua. Sorry about the phantom look but I can only produce an image of myself. I am really in the realm of darkness."

Donald squawked, "You're in the realm of darkness?!"

She nodded, "Yes, I have been trapped here for about thirteen years. It takes a lot of energy to produce an image like this, and I can only produce them here."

"Um excuse me Aqua," Kairi cut in, "but have you seen our friend Sora, I know he's here somewhere."

"Why yes, I know Sora quite well; he is here and should be coming this way soon." Then her image vanished and Kairi heard voices coming their way.

"Hayner, Pence, Olette, run, into that room over there, hurry!" They did as they were told, and Donald, Goofy, and Kairi drew out their weapons and stood ready to attack. The door to the next hallway begun to open up and two figures came through.

* * *

Sora walked into the hidden chamber, it was covered in the same emblems that had covered the hallway, and there was a white chair that sat in the middle of the room the back of it was facing him. He walked around to the front of the chair and his eyes grew wide as dinner plates, there sitting in the chair was a boy of about fourteen who looked asleep.

He had wind- swept blonde hair that spiked into a starburst. He wore a black shirt that was covered by a jacket, one half was white and the other was black, the inside of the jacket was red. On his right shoulder he had a small piece of armor, across his chest was and x made of straps that had a silver buckle in the middle that was shaped like the emblem on the walls. Under the jacket was a silver vest that was buttoned in the middle and hung open about waist height. A small amount of armor was around his waist, the middle was gold and the outer part was silver. His pants were black on the upper part, and then it turned to a silver square that wrapped around the bottom of his pants, under that silver stripe was another one of white, and the rest of the pants were black. His shoes were gold on the top, with shades of black and grey around the shoes, and red and gold stripes. And on his right arm he wore a black and white checkered wristband.

"Who… who is he?"

The voice became excited all of a sudden, "_My… my body! I haven't seen it in thirteen years!_"

Sora was shocked, "This is your body, and you haven't seen it in thirteen years?!"

"_Yes, thirteen years… it has been thirteen years since I saw it, thirteen years since I last held a weapon, thirteen years since I saw my two best friends, thirteen years since my heart was split in half and removed from my body, and it has been thirteen years since you welcomed my drifting heart into you._" Sora's head started to ache, he remembered as a young boy welcoming a bright light into his heart.

"It was you, and that was your heart," Sora placed his hand over his heart and probably his guest's too, "I'm sorry I didn't know, I would have come here years ago and let you out."

"_I stayed hidden so long because I needed to regain my strength after my heart being broken in two. The worlds really didn't need me though until now. And one other thing, this is why I had reservations about having you let my heart out, because I was a Keyblade wielder before, that was the only reason you got a Keyblade. And I don't know if you will still have one after you let me out and if you don't want to risk that then it would be ok if you let me stay actually._"

Sora shook his head, "I am sorry but even if I won't be able to use the Keyblade anymore I would still do the right thing and wake you up. You are just going to have to tell me what to do though."

The voice sighed, "_If you're still set on doing it then I'll tell you. Go up to my body and wait._" He then did as he was told. The boy's body started to move, much to Sora's surprise, he held out his arm and a Keyblade appeared.

It was shorter than Sora's, it was a bronze and brown color, and its teeth were five rectangles that projected out of a curved piece that was attached to the blade. The guard had more of a blocky shape to it, and the keychain was silver figure eight with a blue gem inside one of the loops.

The blade's tip started generating a beam of light; it didn't take long for the beam to shoot towards Sora's heart. He spread his arms wide as the light hit his heart. He remembered the first time he had released someone else's heart; to get Kairi's heart out of him he had to stab himself with a Keyblade that unlocks people's hearts. Which in the end he ended up turning into a Heartless and it was only because Kairi had called for him that he hadn't stayed that way? He was happy that this time there wasn't any stabbing involved.

As he stood there, the beam of light still aimed at his chest, he saw a glowing orb come out of his chest and floated in the air above him for a minute. It then flew higher up in the room and came back to rest in front of the boy. It went into him and the beam of light from the Keyblade subsided.

Sora walked up to the chair as the boy's eyes slowly opened, revealing their icy blue color. They blinked for a moment and came to rest on him.

He smiled, "Hey Sora!" Sora put his hands behind his head and gave his trademark grin.

"Well my friend it is good to finally see you and really hear your voice."

"Thanks Sora," he said, "oh, I can tell you my name now. It's Ventus but call me Ven."

"Nice to meet you Ven!" They both smiled and Ven tried to rise from the chair, but after thirteen years of not using his legs he couldn't stand. Sora put Ven's arm around his shoulder. "Take it easy, I'll help you get around tell you get steadied."

Ven smiled as Sora helped him up, "Thank you again Sora, you just seem to help everyone anyway you can." Sora smiled and helped Ven walk outside the chamber and into the hall. Ven looked around, "You know I thought Aqua would be here to greet us but she isn't."

"Well she might not have enough energy; but she would show up if she could." Ven nodded. As they went through the halls Ven told Sora all about how his heart ended up outside his body. Sora was very interested in the χ- blade.

"So Xehanort used you and you dark half, Vanitas, to create the ultimate Keyblade. I didn't know that was possible. I thought the only the seven of light and the thirteen of darkness could forge the χ- blade."

"Yes, as far as we know the χ- blade endeavor with me was his first. But when I saw him last he was an old man; but that picture of him in RadiantGarden is a younger version that seems almost familiar to me, but I don't know where I saw it." As they approached a door Ven looked down at his feet, "He is trying harder now. He sent his Heartless (Ansem), his Nobody (Xemnas), and now he is gathering copies of himself and he tried to turn you into one as well. Oh and speaking of which can you still summon your Keyblade?"

Sora stopped and held out his hand and in a flash his Keyblade appeared, as he dismissed it his face fell downcast, "Yes, I now know that you were the reason why I didn't become one. But I feel so bad that I let him almost make me his puppet."

Ven looked at his friend, "He had used me before, it was before he made Vanitas, and he kept trying to train me to use my darkness to create the χ- blade but since I wouldn't he made Vanitas to do it for me." Sora looked over at the blonde. "He also used my friend Terra to do his dirty work. He tricked Terra into killing our old master, Eraqus."

Sora was shocked, "Really?" Ven nodded. They were silent for a few moments. Then Sora shifted Ven's weight and said, "Well, let's get going. We won't get anything done just standing here moping." Ven smiled and Sora pushed the door open.

They were surprised to see three figures standing there, weapons at the ready. The three lowered them and one, a red- headed girl, yelled, "SORA!" Ven removed his arm from around Sora's shoulder and leaned on a wall. Sora then ran up to Kairi and embraced her. As they separated Sora was tackled by Donald and Goofy. Ven laughed as Sora got up and the three grabbed hands and leapt around like they had after Sora woke up from his yearlong sleep.

Kairi smiled and then noticed the blonde boy leaning against the wall, "Sora who's your friend?"

Donald and Goofy, just noticing the boy, stared at him; their eyes grew wide and their jaws dropped, "VENTUS!" They ran up to him, while he waved happily to them. Kairi was as lost as anyone could be, she had no idea who this mysterious boy was but everyone seemed to.

"Sora," Ven smiled, "Kairi would probably like some answers." Sora nodded. "Well Kairi, names Ventus but everyone calls me Ven. Thirteen years ago me and two of my friends battled the evil Keyblade wielder Xehanort, the same Xehanort that you are getting ready to battle at this time. He tried to use me and my dark counterpart, Vanitas, to create the ultimate weapon, the χ- blade. He failed but only because I destroyed the χ- blade, which nearly destroyed me and succeeded in breaking my heart in half. My heart then floated off, leaving my body nearly lifeless. My friend Aqua brought my body here and hid it for the thirteen years."

"What about your heart, Ven?"

Ven hoisted himself up higher on the wall and Goofy came and held him up, "Well my heart floated endlessly though space until it felt a light calling to it. The same light brought you to the DestinyIslands. Sora, as a young boy, welcomed my heart into him and I rested there for the years. Just a few minutes ago Sora released my heart back into my body." Kairi glanced at Sora who nodded.

"Hey uh guys, we need to get Hayner and the others," Goofy stated.

Kairi nodded and peaked into a nearby room, which the TwilightTown crew had run into. She called, "Hey guys lets go!" They came out and the gang introduced themselves to Ven, as they left through Namine's room Sora couldn't help but grab the drawing that had caught his eye on the way in. Then they made their way into town.

"Do yall have to go," Olette asked? They nodded and said their goodbyes but before they left Sora started. He then turned back towards town.

"What's up Sora?"

Sora turned, "There's something I need to get real quick; go ahead to the gummi ship and I'll be right with you." He dashed off back into town, they looked after him for a second, and Ven had a feeling he knew what Sora was doing. They all went to the gummi ship, and a few minutes later Sora came running back with five ice- cream bars in his hands.

"You stopped for ice- cream," Donald quacked angrily? Sora shrugged and handed everyone a bar. They all took it and started eating.

Kairi closed her eyes and savored the sweet and salty taste, "Wow, what flavor is this?"

Ven took a bite, "Well Kairi, according to Hayner and the gang it is called sea salt ice- cream."

"Well its sure good!"

Sora gave his trademark smile, "I thought you guys would like it. Well let's get a move on." Donald went over and started up the ship, they took one last look at the twilight covered world. Even after finding Ven, Sora felt a strange longing to stay there.

As they flew through interspace an alert went off.

"Hey," Sora ran in, "what's going on?"

Kairi looked at the panel and turned to the brunette, "Two small bogeys have shown up on the radar."

"Can we get a visual?"

The red head pushed a button and a video of two armored warriors on gliders came on screen; "Hey I know who that is!" Kairi ran to the door to the ship and pushed She hit the button on her right shoulder and her clothes became a suit of pink and purple armor. She then opened the door and hailed the two armored figures.

They pulled up and hopped off their gliders, which vanished after they got off them. Sora came running up just as Kairi closed the door and removed her armor. The two figures were taller than him and they seemed familiar.

One had on bulky, black, and dark purple armor. The other was taller and his armor was slimmer and was black and red.

The first on said, "Hey Sora how ya been?" Sora gasped, he knew that voice anywhere. The boy's armor flashed and vanished to reveal Riku, smiling at his old friend. "It's good to see you Sora, what have you been up to?"

Sora put his hands behind his head and answered, "It's good to see you too Riku and I've just been going around training mostly in worlds that were new to me."

The other boy removed his armor and smirked, "What no hello for me?"

Sora smiled at the red head, "Hiya Lea sorry, how has your training going?"

"Training is over Sora; and if you're wondering Kairi is almost better than me in battle!" Sora's eyes grew wide as he glanced over at Kairi; her face had turned almost the same shade as her hair. Sora smiled.

Riku put a hand on his shoulder, "It is good to see you again Sora." Then Ven walked in and was surprised to see those two standing there.

"Whoa, I did not realize we had company!"

Lea's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, "Hey I know you! Thirteen years ago you and I had a sparring match on RadiantGarden. You haven't changed a bit!"

"Yeah Lea," Ven smirked, "do you remember my name?"

"Ventus right, but you prefer Ven." The blonde laughed and Lea scratched his head. "Guess that's a yes, Ven have you met Riku?"

"Well," Ven muttered, "I know who he is but he doesn't know me."

Riku cocked his head, "And how do you know me?"

Sora bit his lip and muttered, "Well his heart has been residing in mine for thirteen years so he knows who I know."

"HE WAS WHERE," Riku and Lea yelled?!

Ven shook his head, "Long story, we'll tell you later. So what did the King say, do we need to go to RadiantGarden now?"

"Well that story better come soon," Lea groaned, "and no. Leon has told us that Xehanort has been laying low and so the king said that we can take a little time and help out in some of the other worlds. Kairi could use some more field experience and I'm sure Ven could use some brushing up on fighting after thirteen years of apparently being in Sora."

"Yea," squawked Donald, just coming into the room.

Sora smiled, "Let's do it!" They turned the gummi ship around and flew off into interspace.

* * *

Alright second chapter down! Please review and just to let you guys know during this story I will be posting some other stories that happen during the nine months between this story and DDD, I am calling it the Training Series and they will be separate stories because each adventure will defiantly be more than one chapter long.

Ok next time, the group shows up at a familiar world just in time for a wedding, but the celebration is threatened by a gang of robbers! See you next time in **Agrabah!**


	3. Chapter 3: Agrabah

Chapter 3 coming right up…. I would like to thank DaniPotterLovesGod for favoriting and pointing out some grammatical errors that from now on I will be trying to fix!

And again, I do not own any of the worlds or characters in this story.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Agrabah**

As they flew Sora sat in the room that had been given to him, he was looking at the drawing he took from Naminé's room. A knock came on the door, Kairi, Riku, Lea and Ven walked in. Sora set the drawing down and smiled.

"I knew it," Ven exclaimed, "I knew you were getting that drawing!"

Sora shrugged, "I couldn't help it." He turned to Lea and Riku, "Did they bring you up to speed on what has been going on?" They nodded; Lea saw the drawing and he gasped.

"What is it?"

Lea pointed to the drawing, "It… it's me and Roxas! Where did you get that from?"

"It was on the wall Naminé's room," Kairi shrugged.

Lea was about so ask something when an alarm went off. "We're coming near a world, let's go!" They all hopped up and ran towards the helm.

"Sora, its Agrabah!"

"Alright," Sora exclaimed, "let's see what Aladdin and the others are doing!"

They landed the ship and all piled out, even from outside the city they could see that something was going on. There were cheers, balloons, and streamers flying everywhere in the city.

"That's not normal," Goofy said. They walked inside the gates and the town was covered in decorations and everywhere people were talking excitedly. Ven walked over and grabbed a newspaper that was blowing around.

Sora pointed at the newspaper, "That's not either; I guess Genie has been busy lately." He took it, looked at the title and his eyes grew to the size of platters, "I can't believe our luck!"

"What?"

"Tell you in a minute, lets head over to Aladdin's house," Sora said turning off and making his way further into town, everyone followed. Sora climbed up a few crates and got on a flat roof and he motioned for them to follow, once up Donald and Goofy removed a few boards from that revealed a hole in the wall.

Goofy went in and motioned them all in, "Come on, Aladdin's house is up here." They walked up and sitting there with a chest in his hands was Aladdin, next to him were Abu, Carpet and Genie stood behind him. They all turned at the sound of the seven coming up.

"Hey," Genie said with a humongous smile, "look who showed up just in time for the wedding!"

The others looked confused, "What wedding?"

Sora held up the paper and the headline read, "Aladdin + Jasmine: Wedding of the Century".

"Congratulations," Donald said!

"Thank you," Aladdin smiled, "but I don't believe I know these four." He pointed at Kairi, Riku, Lea, and Ven.

"Hi I'm Kairi!"

"My name's Riku."

"Name's Lea, got it memorized?"

"I'm Ventus, call me Ven." Aladdin waved and looked down at the box.

"What's in there Aladdin," Goofy inquired.

"It's something I need," he opened the box and inside was a dagger.

Genie turned into Woody Allen and stuttered, "Well, uh, that's a nice dagger. Interesting nuptial accessory. It's a bit… sharp."

Aladdin picked it up slowly, "It belonged to my father."

Genie turned back to his normal self, "Your father? You never said a word about your father. Oh, I've got to let the caterer know!" He turned into a caterer, "Chicken or sea bass?" Sora face- palmed, typical Genie.

Aladdin quietly said, "He's not coming to the wedding… he died a long time ago."

Genie turned back to normal and cringed, "Sorry."

"That's okay," Aladdin stood up, "I never knew him. Maybe if I did, I'd feel ready for this."

After turning into bunny slippers on Aladdin's feet he said, "Al, are you getting cold feet?"

"It's alright to be nervous Aladdin," Kairi said sweetly, "my parents said that you will always be nervous before your wedding."

"No, guys. It's just that…" Aladdin objected, "I've always been a street rat. Stealing what I need to survive, runnin' from the guards…" Abu agreed but his face dropped when Aladdin said, "Living my life alone." He patted Abu's head, "I'm takin' a big step today, into a new world.

Genie, with headphones on his head and a microphone in front of him announced, "Today's topic, 'Fears of the Future Family Man.' Al from Agrabah, share with us.

"I never had a father to show me how to raise a family."

"No role model."

Lea added dramatically, "Get a little deeper."

"What do I know about families? Genie, Sora, what if I'm no good at it? If my father were here…"

Sora went over and placed and arm around Aladdin's shoulders, "Aladdin, if your father were here he'd be proud of you."

Genie changed back to normal, "That's right Al, little buddy."

"I just wish he could see this," Aladdin dreamily said. "There's a party here in Agrabah, and the party's all for me. Just look you guys at where we are and how our dreams have come to be." He stared out towards the palace, "I never ever had a real family; someone who could just understand me…"

Iago flew up and he exclaimed, "Hey, come on Aladdin, this mush has got to end!" In a snap the outside of Aladdin's home turned into a party zone.

Genie turned into a tailor, 'Let's get you dressed 'cause you're the star! Hey, come on, it's your wedding day!" He changed Aladdin in a flash into cream colored wedding robes with mahogany fringe. He turned to Sora and the gang and shook his head, "You guys can't come in clothes like that." He swung his tailor's tape measure around everyone but Kairi and their clothes were changed. They were wearing black suits and ties of different colors; Sora's was yellow, Riku's was purple, Ven's was sky blue, Lea's was red, Donald's was a dark blue, and Goofy's was green.

Genie pulled out some pink ribbon and swirled it around Kairi; she was changed into a long white dress, the ribbon around her waist was pink, and the straps of the dress were white, and connected to them was a pink veil material that covered her upper arms. Sora saw her and his mouth dropped.

Then Genie and Aladdin hooked arms and started to walk off; Sora went over and hooked arms with Kairi, who blushed a deep red. Aladdin and Genie stepped off the balcony and landed on Carpet; by some of Genie's magic Sora and co. flew after them. The magic dropped them off in the front row and they saw Aladdin standing on the altar and Genie walking around in a tux with a microphone.

"Sora is Genie always like that," Kairi asked? Sora nodded and smiled.

Genie was walking around talking to all the guests like a news anchor at, "Hello, and welcome to "Lifestyles of the Rich and Magical!" That's right; we're taking you to the marriage of a millennium." He turns to the doorway, "And who's this coming on the lovely stretch camel? Oh it's Cleopatra and Cesar and they're bringing a salad how wonderful."

Riku and Lea shook their heads, "He's quite a character, that Genie!" Goofy nodded in agreement.

Genie appeared by Aladdin looking a little distraught, "Bad news Al, the boutonnières clash with the cumber buns!" He held out a white boutonnière and a brown cumber bun.

"Genie," Aladdin said unsurely, "isn't it a little late for that?"

"What, what are you trying to say? Out with it! What, what… they're here. Oh no!" He turned into a short white rabbit wearing a waistcoat and carrying a pocket watch. He ran down the isle yelling, "I'm late; I'm late, for a very important date!"

He went out the doors and then quickly came right back out in a suit. Sora smiled at his crazy antics, and Kairi tried to suppress her giggles. Lea looked at the blue guy in disbelief. Genie then blew on a horn and then vanished. All was still for a while and then Ven pointed out a small brown figure running down the isle, it was Abu, he ran and jumped onto Carpet.

Then through the doors came Jasmine's bridesmaids who were followed by a boy carrying a flag. Then came a small fat man with a white beard, the Sultan; everyone including Sora and his friends bowed as he passed. They all called out, "You're majesty, your highness!"

Abu started to chatter excessively and wave to the Sultan who laughed and waved back. The guards got to the end and set down the throne; the Sultan ran off it and to the pavilion. Aladdin bowed when he reached him.

Aladdin had a deadpan look on his face so the Sultan nudged him with his elbow, "Don't look so solemn boy, this is a happy day." Aladdin looked over at his friends, Sora and Ven gave him a thumbs up, Riku and Lea gave him a reassuring nod, Kairi gave him her brightest smile, while Donald and Goofy waved happily. Aladdin smiled at their reassurance.

Genie exclaimed, "Oh look, it's a Kodiak moment!" On Genie's left side, Riku saw a bear appear, it roared. Genie grabbed it by the mouth and ordered, "Put that bear out of here!"

It vanished and then he, with the snap of his fingers a long white carpet appeared that was lead by doves; it covered the whole isle. They all turned to the door and saw peacocks standing in front of it; their feathers contracted and revealed Jasmine.

The Sultan smiled, "Ohh…"

"Wow," Aladdin gasped!

Kairi placed a hand on her heart, "Oh my, she looks beautiful!" Lea quietly gave a long, low whistle. Jasmine was in a long, traditional, white dress with gold fringe, and a veil that flowed behind her.

As she walked down the isle she saw Sora, Donald, and Goofy standing there. When her eyes rested on them they waved, her heart leapt at the sight of Kairi who smiled warmly at the fellow Princess of Heart. Lea and Ven nodded to her and she smiled back; but when her eyes spotted Riku in the crowd she gave a small start, she swiftly regained her composure but his presence there made her uneasy. Riku noticed this and turned his face away.

At the end of the isle the Sultan took her hand and happily stated, "I never thought this day would come." He sighed, "Now I'm afraid that it has come all too soon."

Jasmine hugged her father, "Oh father."

"It's all so magical," Genie happily stuttered, I'm not gonna cry. I'm not…" He burst into tears; he reached over and grabbed Carpet. He then blew his nose on the magic carpet. Sora's mouth dropped as Genie let Carpet go in embarrassment. "Oh Sorry."

Kairi covered her mouth trying to keep herself from laughing.

Jasmine and Aladdin walked up the pavilion stairs to the top, Aladdin took a deep breath, "Well, we're here…"

Sora and co. heard Jasmine reply, "Together forever." Then the pavilion started to shake. Sora grabbed Kairi's arm protectively.

"I thought to earth wasn't supposed to move until the honeymoon…," Genie questionably said.

The Sultan gasped, "Oh, oh, my word!" Everyone turned and saw a large group of elephants burst through the walls and into the pavilion.

Genie changed so that he was wearing a cowboy hat and a plaid bandana around his neck, "STAMPEDE!" As the guests scattered Sora and his friends ran in front of the altar, where Jasmine and Aladdin still stood watching. Then a piece of the pavilion started to fall, Riku saw it and leapt onto the pavilion and pulled the couple out of the way.

"Thanks Riku," Aladdin panted. Riku gave a quick nod and returned to the others.

Genie turned and saw and elephant was about to smash Abu, he flew swiftly and grabbed the monkey in time to save him, "Come here monkey boy, you were almost Dumbo toe jam!" He then saw another elephant walk over Carpet. "Oh they trampled the carpet!"

Lea heard him and added on, "That's a little redundant!"

"This is a really bad day for you, isn't it," Kairi said brushing off the magic carpet. Then many thieves and dozens of Bandit Heartless ran in and started robbing the guests. One of the thieves went towards Kairi; Sora saw and ran towards her, it really wasn't necessary though. Kairi whipped out her arm and her Keyblade appeared. The thief was taken aback by the sight of the girl with a sword. She turned on him and in one sweep sent him sprawling on the ground.

Sora stared in awe at her; she looked back at the brunette and gave him a sweet smile. Some of the guards stood fighting the thieves. One thief was muscular and his skin was almost a grey color. He wore a black vest with purple fringe and no shirt; his pants were blue and baggy, his belt was red, and he had five' o' clock shadow and long stringy mustache. On his hands were black straps that had three golden claws attached to them.

He sliced at the guards with his claws and their clothes fell off leaving them in their tighty- whities. One guard yelled as he covered himself, "They fight like demons!"

The other one cried, "Worse then demons! These are the Forty Thieves!"

Ven started, "The Forty Thieves!" He remembered the stories Master Eraqus used to tell him about the dreaded Forty Thieves when he had asked the master about other worlds.

Genie stopped fighting and counted quickly, "Really? I get thirty- nine…"

Aladdin and Sora glanced around the room, they saw another thief in a blue robe that covered his face; they both yelled, "Forty!" They ran at him as he picked up something from the pile of presents for Jasmine and Aladdin.

"Can I see your invitation?" The thief turned and there stood Sora and Aladdin.

He said, "Stay out of my way boys and you won't get hurt." He grabbed a statue of an Egyptian cat that stood nearby and threw it at them. They dodged and he grabbed the thing he had grabbed earlier, Aladdin and Sora also grabbed it and the three were sent sprawling as they fought for a hold on it.

"Fools," the man said, "you don't stand a chance against the King of Thieves!"

"Well then, we'll bow to you when we get up," Sora spat. Aladdin kicked the King in the gut.

* * *

(Pavilion)

Kairi stood in front of Jasmine sword drawn; Jasmine suddenly stepped out from in front of the Keyblader and punched a nearby thief in the face, "That was for ruining my wedding!" Lea, Kairi, Riku, Ven, and the thieves they had been battling stopped and stared at her, shocked at Jasmine's punch. They began to battle again.

"Wow," Kairi said to her, "that was a nice punch!"

Jasmine gave a small laugh, "You're not the only Princess of Heart that can fight!" Kairi took another swing at a tall skinny thief and laughed.

Genie had reappeared now and was blocking the escape route of three thieves alongside Lea. The thieves started taunting him with their weapons and Genie turned to Lea and winked at the red- head. Genie made six copies of Lea, Chakram/ Keyblade and all, and six clones of himself dressed as ninjas. They all spun their weapons around and posed in striking positions. The thieves ran for their lives! The clones disappeared and Lea and Genie fist- bumped.

Genie then grew large and grabbed a nearby elephant and pointed its trunk at some of the thieves, "Freeze sandbags!" Air blew out of its trunk and blew the thieves away, "don't make me use the other end!" It's trunk deflated and Genie gently placed it on the ground; he then pointed his finger and blasted two thieves in the rear end. He then turned into Forrest Gump, "Mama always said 'magic is as magic does'."

The thief with the claws on his hands roared, "Cassim said nothing about facing the powers of a Genie or the might of Keyblade wielders."

Ven charged at him and was knocked back; Riku also came at him, the thief blocked and Riku growled, "Well maybe he didn't know smart guy!"

The thief grabbed Riku's blade and slung the silver haired boy across the room into a pillar; Ven looked over just in time to see the pillar crack and begin to fall onto Riku. He ran quickly over and pulled Riku out of the way; Ven sat Riku's unconscious body against the wall. The thief turned to another and said, "Get the others out of here, we'll leave the King to his plans."

* * *

(Treasure Table)

Aladdin and Sora wrestled with The King of Thieves over the treasure. Sora turned and saw Kairi, Donald, and Goofy coming toward them full speed.

Cassim pulled the treasure from their grasp and turned to run; Kairi pushed past the two and tackled The King of Thieves by his legs, sending him sprawling to the ground. The king was surprised at the fighting spirit of the girl.

Aladdin tried to wrestle the treasure from the King's hands; then an elephant busted through the wall, heading in their direction. The King of Thieves released the treasure, and gave Kairi a hard kick to the face. She flew back into the table. Aladdin and the King dove out of the way of the elephant.

After it passed they ran to Kairi, who was rubbing a large red mark on her forehead.

Aladdin looked around, "Where's the King of Thieves?" He was nowhere in sight.

* * *

(Pavilion)

Riku sat against what was left of the pavilion wall watching Lea, Ven, and the Sultan talk to Genie; he looked to his left and there stood Princess Jasmine. She stared at him with worried eyes.

"Are you worried about me," He said, pushing him to a standing position, "or worried of me?" She turned her eyes away, embarrassed. "Princess, it's alright. I understand why you would be concerned; but I won't hurt you. When I kidnapped you three years ago I was being used by Maleficent." She looked back into his teal eyes as he continued, "I am very sorry for what I did then and I apologize."

Jasmine went over to him, "I forgive you, and Riku was it?" He nodded. "What's past is past; now lets find Aladdin and the others." They walked around and they soon spotted them at the gift table, Sora was helping Kairi to her feet. As they approached Riku could see the red mark on her head clearly from a distance. Donald cast a Curaga on her and the mark vanished.

Riku went up to them, "What happened?"

"Oh nothing," Kairi shrugged, "The King of Thieves just got a lucky kick to my face."

Jasmine went to her husband- to- be and asked, "What were they after, the gifts?"

"Not all the gifts," he held up the treasure, which was a golden rod with a green stone on the top, "this is what the King of Thieves wanted."

Donald glanced over at the table, "With all the other great stuff."

Iago landed on the rod, "Why go for this thing?" The rod lit up brightly and Sora pulled out his Keyblade, thinking it was a Keyhole; Iago flew off it in fright and landed on Ven's shoulder.  
An image of a woman appeared above the rod; her wavy voice rang out, "Your question is mine to answer. The King of Thieves sought my sight to find the Ultimate Treasure."

The two birds of the group smiled, "Did someone say treasure?"

Aladdin turned to Genie and asked, "Genie?"

"Oh," Genie was looking at her and wearing sunglasses, "looks like an Oracle."

"I see all that has been, and all that will be," she slowly mused.

Genie changed into Dustin Hoffman, "Uh oh, uh oh, definitely an Oracle; tells the future, uh oh." He turned to Jasmine and Kairi as his normal self again, "Girlfriends, where were you registered?"

Iago tapped his claws, "Okay, you know all so tell all. Where is the treasure?"

"You know," Donald added, "the Ultimate one?"

"I am bound by the rule of one. One question, one answer."

"I only want one answer," Iago yelled, "where is the Ultimate Treasure?"

The Oracle spread her arms out, "You have already asked your question."

"You mean before," The parrot bellowed, "Oh, that wasn't a question! That was uh… thinking out loud."

Riku grabbed the obnoxious bird by the beak, "Very loud actually!"

"Aladdin," Jasmine grabbed his arm, "we could learn anything. About our lives, our future."

"She could help us find the people we need to defeat Xehanort," Lea whispered to Goofy who nodded in agreement.

The Oracle stared at them with unblinking, glowing, eyes, "You have but to ask."

Aladdin turned to his fiancé and said, "I know what my future is, my future is you. But my past…" He stared off into the sky. "It's a blank. My mother died when I was just a kid, and I never even knew my father. I have no idea where I come from."

The Oracle again said, "Your question is your choice. But remember the rule of one. Choose carefully."

"Oh sure," Iago whined, "She warns him about the one question thing." Carpet knocked the intolerable parrot away.

Aladdin looked into her glowing eyes, "I don't think you can help me. My past isn't just one question, it's a million questions.

"Ah," the Oracle mused, "but mere questions about your past can be answered by your father…"

Aladdin's eyes grew huge, "My father?" The Oracle waved her hand and made a picture of a older man with hair that was black on top and had some gray on the sides and the rest was black, he also had a black mustache and short beard. "My father is alive?"

* * *

Later the gang was at the palace, Kairi was hanging on to the Oracle's rod for Aladdin. Aladdin and Jasmine flew to the palace balcony on Carpet; they stood facing each other.

He looked into Jasmine's eyes, "There's so much I want to know."

"Now you've got the chance to learn," she answered

"If it means, I'd have to go…"

"I'll be right here when you return. Our wedding can wait." The two hugged lovingly.

Aladdin smiled at her, "I love you

"I think it's worth this small delay." Kairi came up to the couple and handed them the Oracle.

"Maybe you're right."

"And won't it be great to have your father see our wedding day? It isn't too late."

They held up the Oracle and the others gathered around, as the woman's image appeared in the sky; she asked, "Have you chosen your question?"

Aladdin nodded, "I have."

"Then ask."

"Where is my father?" he asked slowly.

She pointed towards the desert, "Follow the trail of the Forty Thieves. Your father is trapped within their world."

Everyone gasped, "THE FORTY THIEVES?!"

"Is he hurt," Aladdin asked in earnest, "how long has he been their prisoner?"

The Oracle held out her hands, "I am sorry. I can only answer one question." She then disappeared.

Aladdin looked down at his feet and said, "It's up to me."

Jasmine put a hand on her fiancé's shoulder, "Take as long as you need."

"Yea and we will be with you the entire time," Ven exclaimed!

The soon husband- to- be looked at his friends and smiled, "Thank you guys but, this is something I need to do on my own."

"Alright," Riku said, "but if you need help you can always count on us."

Aladdin smiled and then turned back to Jasmine, "I'll be back in time for our wedding, I promise." They hugged and Aladdin turned away, leaving the eight staring after him. Then the Oracle's rod lit up again and turned into a Keyhole; Sora held out his Keyblade to close it but Kairi pushed past him.

"Let me have a go," she summoned Destiny's Embrace and held it out toward the Keyhole; a beam of light shot out of the blade and into the Keyhole. It closed with a click.

Jasmine knew what that meant, "You have to go, right?" Donald nodded. "Be safe, and come back in time for the real wedding; we would love to have you here for it!" They nodded to the princess and headed towards the gummi ship.

* * *

Yea! Please read and Review and tell me what you think of how it is going.

Next Chapter, they again visit a familiar world but this time a place of familiarity is threatened by a mysterious threat but can one of the newer warriors in the group, Kairi, solve this mystery? Next time in **Olympus Coliseum!**


	4. Chapter 4: Olympus Coliseum

Thank you everyone for reviewing! I never thought it would get this popular so fast, none of my other stuff does. I would like to thank Keyblade Master Liz Castellan, Ruby Warrior Girl 730, (these two are a bit late…. Sorry I didn't thank you sooner) MuseLover99, and delphigirl689 for favoriting! And (this is late too….. I'M SORRY) thank you Alice Gracey for following.

And I am so so so so so so sorry it took so long to get this chapter up! I was going to have someone edit it but they didn't have time so it took longer than expected… again I'm really sorry!

Many of you noticed how I only had them there for a short time, I will tell you that there will be a return journey and that a few other chapters will be like this… where I end it in the middle of a movie. I do that so that when their party gets more people the others can join in the adventure.

Again, I don't own any of the characters or worlds!

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**Chapter 4: Olympus Coliseum **

Back on the ship Ven was eyeing the Summon Gem he had found laying around back in Agrabah. It was red and gold with a light blue upside- down triangle in the middle.

Kairi looked over his shoulder at it, "Nice Summon Gem." He started at her voice. "Sorry Ven didn't mean to startle you."

"It's ok Kairi, and thanks; I found it laying about the palace back in Agrabah. Princess Jasmine said I could keep it." Kairi pulled out her Summon Gem from Master Yen Sid. "Oh, you have one too?"

"Yea, Master Yen Sid gave it to me for extra protection." Ven nodded and then the alarm went off.

They both dashed up to the bridge, where Sora was leaping into the air yelling, "Yes! Olympus Coliseum here we come!" Ven looked out and sure enough, there was Olympus. It hadn't changed a bit.

They left the gummi ship and found themselves in a huge crowd. Everyone was yelling and in a state of panic.

Lea looked around, "From what Roxas told me about this place it's not usually like this." He pushed his way through the crowd and into an alleyway, the others followed. They weren't the only ones with this idea; two people stood there too. One was a woman in a pink dress, with chestnut colored hair, that she had back into a high ponytail.

The other was a boy about Lea's age with black spiky hair, blue eyes; he wore a shirt with a high blue collar, a black breastplate that fanned out at the bottom into a kilt like shape with silver shoulder guards, a large brown and black belt, black gloves, blue pants, and black and brown boots. He also had a large sword with a golden hand guard and a blue handle strapped to his back.

The woman turned toward them and her eyes gleamed, "Sora, Donald, Goofy, oh I'm so glad you've come!"

"Hiya Meg," Goofy said happily.

The other boy ran over and swung his arm around Ven's shoulders, and he pulled him into a friendly hug, "How ya doin Ven? Long time no see!"

Ven laughed, "Same here Zack!" The two boys laughed; they came out of the hug, still laughing.

Sora cocked his head in question, "Who are you?"

"Name's Zack," Zack replied with a grin.

"Nice to meet you Zack," Donald waved, "I'm Donald, and this is Goofy, Sora, Kairi, and Riku."

Zack grinned even wider, "Nice to meet you guys."

"Well, this is a surprise," a voice came from behind Meg; then a short satyr with an orange beard and 5'o clock shadow came into view, "Sora, I didn't realize you knew Ventus, and I don't believe we know these guys." He spotted Kairi and he stood up straight, and went up to her and gave her a huge smile, "I don't believe we've met sweetcakes, I'm Phil, trainer of Heroes." Sora crossed his arms and glared at him; Kairi started and then moved over to Sora's side, and grabbed lightly onto his arm. Phil put his hands on his hips and groaned, "Man, it's the same thing every time, the hero gets the girl but the trainer gets no one."

She laughed, "Hello I'm Kairi." Phil's eyes widened and he slowly backed off. "What is it Phil?"

"You're THE Kairi, the Kairi that Sora is always talking about and always is concerned about?" She looked over at Sora, whose face had turned a bright red, and then she looked back at the trainer and nodded. Phil looked around at the others and deducted, "Then that probably means one of you two guys is the famous Riku."

The silver haired boy raised his hand, "That would be me Phil."

"Hello," Lea grumbled, "don't forget about me!" All eyes turned to him. "Name's Lea, got it memorized?"

Phil pushed past him, "Yea, sure." That made the pyro glare at the satyr. Phil stared out at the street, where pandemonium raged. He sighed, "This is just crazy, all this madness over one tiny rumor."

"Yea," Zack groaned, "a rumor that just happens to be true."

Phil shushed the warrior, "Don't let them hear you or else things will get worse out there."

Sora and co. stared out into the street as groups of people yelled and grabbed things as if the world was about to end.

Donald squawked, "What is going on out there?"

With a neigh, a white Pegasus with a blue mane landed in the middle of the square. Everyone crowded around while a young man with huge muscles dismounted. He had light brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a chestnut colored headband, and a similarly colored outfit just like Zack's, except he had no pants or shoulder guards, he wore a darker brown belt with a gold belt buckle, he wore dark brown sandals that went up to his knees, they had a royal blue cape that went to his waist, he had bronze cuffs on his hands, and a sword strapped to his belt.

They all kept asking the young man questions, but now most of the path towards the Coliseum was clear; Phil exclaimed, "Good going Herc, he's giving us a distraction so that we can get to the Coliseum, let's go!" They all took off through town towards the large arena.

Once all of them got to the Coliseum, everyone collapsed from running. When they finally caught their breath the same Pegasus they saw in town landed and Hercules got off, "It's a total madhouse down there, Phil! One rumor from an eavesdropper and the whole town's in an uproar!"

"Um, Herc," Ven cut in, "what's going on?"

Hercules turned to him, "Hey Ven, haven't seen you in a long time." Ven smiled in answer. He turned to the others and smiled, "Good to see all of you here too; and to answer your question Ven, someone has been scaring off contestants for the Games. So much so that we are going to have to close the Coliseum if nothing changes."

"CLOSE THE COLISEUM," Donald exclaimed, "you can't do that!"

Phil shrugged, "Well with no competitors we can't do anything, and when we try to find the one who is scaring them, we can't."

Lea scratched his head, "That really is a problem, but maybe we can help."

"Really," Zack exclaimed, "that would be great guys, but how?"

Everyone was quiet until Kairi broke the silence, "I've got it guys! Since no one around here knows who I am, I could leave town at night, disguise myself, borrow another weapon, and pretend to be a competitor. That way we can catch whoever is doing this in the act!"

"Great idea Kairi!"

"You rock!"

"You go girl!"

She giggled, "Oh, thank you."

Phil crossed his arms and looked around at everyone's smiling faces, "We better not get our hopes up too high, but this plan seems like our best bet. Meg, why don't you take our actress to get her costume on, and Zack take Riku and Sora to help find a good weapon for her to use."

A few minutes later Meg and Kairi walked back into the Vestibule. With her helmet on, Kairi was almost unrecognizable; she wore a silver breastplate, with crimson shoulder pads, a brown leather belt, and a crimson knee- length skirt, and silver boots. Her helmet was silver with crimson accents, it covered her head completely and two sides covered her cheeks, and one piece jutted down and covered her nose.

She spoke in a sweet voice to the others, who stood there gaping at her, "Hello friends, I'm Kyma!"

"Wow Kairi… um sorry… Kyma," Lea stuttered.

Goofy smiled, "Sora and the others are waiting for you." She followed Meg to the weaponry storage unit. Sora and the others stood there while Phil gave them a pep talk on swords.

Phil looked up from his lecture and his mouth dropped, "W… w… WOW!" Everyone turned. All their mouths dropped.

Sora's mouth spread into his trademark smile, "All right Kairi, you look fantastic." Kairi was glad the helmet covered her cheeks so that no one could see how red they were. "Hey we picked you up a sword," he held up a broadsword that had a golden handle and a bronze hand guard, "what do you think?" Kairi picked it up, testing its balance; she smiled and strapped it into her belt.

"Thanks guys, I'll leave tonight and we'll see how it goes, oh and call me Kyma." She then left to go prepare.

As the boys stared after her, Zack elbowed Sora in the arm, and "Quite the girlfriend you have there."

"What," Sora stuttered, "wait… we're not… well… um." Riku shook his head and smiled. Ven, Lea, Donald, Goofy, and Hercules walked in; they laughed when they saw Sora's face, it was as red as a fire truck.

Riku pointed at Zack and mouthed, "He said something." The others laughed while Sora stomped out.

* * *

That night Pegasus waited outside the Vestibule for Kairi, she came out and mounted him; she was about to leave when someone grabbed her arm. She looked down and smiled at the sight of Sora's smiling face.

"Come to wish me goodbye Sora?"

He scratched his head, "Yea and I wanted to tell you to be careful. Don't even mention the Keyblade and watch out for a certain troublemaker around here, Hades. He is a tough one and sly one; he is easy to spot though, his head is on fire." Kairi laughed; she got down and hugged her friend. She then mounted the flying horse and Sora watched as they took off, and were soon lost to sight.

He stared into the sky after them for a long while and he soon saw the picture of him, Donald, and Goofy appear in the stars; then Riku's voice came from behind him, "Does that mean you guys are true heroes, that picture in the stars?" Sora nodded, and Riku continued, "I could see it from home, even though it was in a different position because of the world difference." He stared at Sora, "It's Kairi, and you're worried about her, aren't you?"

Sora looked at him and sat down on the Coliseum steps, "Yea, I am. She means more to me than anything."

"Something happened between you two," Riku stated, "I know it. So go ahead and spill!"

Sora breathed deeply, "Alright Riku. One month after I left I secretly came back and met with Kairi. And we… well…"

"Spill it Sora!"

"We shared a paopu fruit." Riku was stunned. Sora smiled, "And you had no clue!"

"Wow," Riku muttered, "wasn't expecting that! Why didn't you tell… wait I know; you knew we wouldn't stop picking on you if you told us. But why now of all times why not wait till this thing is all over?"

Sora turned from him and slowly replied, "I really don't want to talk about it."

"Oh." That was all Riku could say, he didn't know what had happened but, still he wished he could help

* * *

Kairi landed Pegasus a great distance from town and sent him back; she then walked to the nearest inn. Hercules, Phil, Meg, and Zack had put together a pouch of 300 drachma for her to spend.

The inn wasn't very full but everyone noticed the armored girl as she walked in; with out removing her helmet she got a room. As part of the plan to lure whoever was causing the trouble she went and made herself known among the other guests.

A fat man in a cream-colored toga leaned over and asked, "So miss, where are you from?"

She didn't answer right away; she ordered a drink of pomegranate juice, drank it, then answered, "Sparta."  
A lean woman with golden hair and yellow dress asked, "Well tell us who you are and where you're headed."

"Name's Kyma and I'm on my way to the Coliseum in Thebes."

The man and woman laughed, "You haven't heard Kyma? The Coliseum is about to close! Someone has been keeping contestants from going there, and that old goat Phil can't keep the place open."

"Well then," Kairi said in a flat tone, "I will be able to spend personal time with the head trainer!" She then got up and headed to her room, leaving the other people staring after her in shock.

* * *

(The Next Day)

Kairi had checked out of the inn early that morning to get a good start on the day; she silently walked along and people along the road stopped and stared at the girl. She could hear them using her false name in their conversations. Their plan had worked the news of the warrior Kyma had spread fast, just as intended. She had changed into her drive clothes but retained her helmet.

Later, when she was on a lonely strip of road a plume of smoke appeared in her path. She stood still and when the smoke cleared, someone stood in its stead. The person had light gray skin, a dark grey toga with a black sash, yellow eyes, but what caught her attention was the blue fire that was on the top of his head.

"Hades I presume," she mused, one hand on her hip and the other on her sword hilt.

He smiled, his mouth full of pointy rotten teeth, "Oh so you've heard of me?"

She shrugged, "More or less. I've heard you're bad news."

"Well, well," his smile faded, "and I've heard about you too, Kyma. All of Greece is buzzing about the warrior girl who, despite all the people who have tried to warn her, is still going to the Coliseum to fight." She gave a slight smirk as he continued, "If you didn't know I gave myself the job of making sure no one goes to the Coliseum."

"That tells who has been causing all the trouble."

He smiled again, "Yea well guess what I'm here for, my little cherry tart."

She snarled, "I think I know, and do not call me that!"

"Well now," he smirked, "the tart has some sourness to it. But to get down to business, you will not be going to the Coliseum."

"Um, sorry but I will!"

"Why you little," his flaming hair grew larger and turned a dark orange color, "I don't think so!" He quickly composed himself, "Sorry… so um Kyma, I'm sure a girl of your talents has some sort of man she is after."

She looked at him quizzically, "Yea… so what if I do?"

"Well, my little cherry tart," his lips again formed a creepy smile, "what you say if I found him and took him from you, unless you agree not to go to the Coliseum?"

Kairi laughed, "Wow… you really are desperate!" He looked at her quizzically. "Only a coward who has no other options would pull that trick. And that tells me that you, not only are a coward, but that you are also scared of me." Hades nearly lost his temper again and as he composed himself, Kairi walked right past him and headed towards Thebes.

She could hear him roaring behind her, "You little sneak, and I'll make sure that he dies slowly and painfully!"

She snickered, boy would Hades have a surprise when he found out who was waiting for him. It didn't take her long from there to get to Thebes and it was the same there too; every one stared at her and was talking about her. She made her way up to the Coliseum and there was Phil waiting for her.

He jumped for joy at the sight of her, "You made it! You must be Kyma, our first competitor in months!" He held the door open for her and she looked in and saw Hercules talking to Zack and Meg, but there was no sign of her friends. "Sorry we don't have many competitors, someone has been driving them away…"

"It was Hades, I met him on the way here," she interjected.

Zack overheard and banged his fist on a column, "I should have known it would be that snake Hades!"

"Hello Kyma," Meg said, "I'm Megara but my friends call me Meg, Mr. Vengeance over there is Zack, this is the famous Hercules, and that is the head trainer and owner of the Coliseum Phil."

Kairi acknowledged them with a nod she then nonchalantly said, "I am going to train before the games this afternoon." She then walked off leaving the others in silence.

* * *

(Later that day)

Kairi was in the Vestibule with Meg talking about Hercules and Zack when Phil walked in.

He turned to the young warrior, "Well Kyma, since there are only three of you in the Games this should go fast. Your first match is against Zack. Now get out there and show him what you've got! But remember these three words when against him, Keep your eyes open!" Kairi was confused but Meg just shook her head and headed to the stands to watch.

As Kairi came out, she saw Hercules, Meg, and six other figures in hooded robes, which had to be Sora and the others. Zack was standing in the ring waiting for her, "You ready Kyma?" She nodded and stepped into the ring. She and Zack got into battle stances and waited for Phil to give the word.

The satyr was about to start the match when a plume of smoke appeared between the two contenders; Hades appeared.

He looked at the two and smiled, "Well if it isn't the mosquito." Zack growled. Hades turned to Kairi, "Well cherry tart, time to pay for your comment earlier!"

Hades hadn't noticed Sora and the others getting behind him; Sora nodded at her and she quietly replied, "Fine, but you might want to turn around first." The god of the underworld turned and saw Sora and the others remove their robes; he looked back at her and saw that she had dropped her sword, removed her helmet, and Destiny's Embrace was in her hand.

"Oh," he said in surprise, "it's Keyboy and friends."

Sora held out Ultima Weapon, "Leave the Coliseum alone Hades!"

"It was a setup, right? Smart move Keyboy," Hades said, "but not gonna happen!" He snapped his fingers and tons of heartless appeared. They spread out and went after the heroes.

"There are so many," Lea groaned.

Ven felt around until he found the summon gem in his pocket, "Hey Kairi," he held it up. She nodded and pulled out hers. Ven held his up, "Iron Man!" The gem turned into a figure about Lea's height with red and gold armor, in the center of his chest was an upside down glowing blue triangle.

Kairi held hers in the air too she yelled, "Batgirl!" In a flash a girl about her own age appeared. She was dressed in a purple suit, black knee high boots, black gloves, a black cape that was connected to her mask, the mask had pointed ear- like things sticking up, on her chest was a yellow bat insignia, she had a yellow utility belt, and under her mask she had short red hair that stuck out the back. "Let's go Batgirl!"

"Let's do it!" They leapt into the fray and took out tons of Heartless.

Ven and Iron Man yelled, "Comin' through!" Iron Man's repulser beams decimated Heartless in every direction. All the others were bashing enemies left and right.

As his army started dissipating Hades grew furious, "I'm gonna need a bigger guy!" An evil grin spread across his face and he vanished in smoke.

Donald sent out a Triple Fiagara and took out the last heartless, "Well, that's all done!" Then the ground started to shake.

"Really Donald," Zack groaned, "you had to jinx it?!" Then, crashing through a wall, a giant brown crab came towards them. Zack jumped back in fright, "Karkinos!" The crab swung his claws at the group of them; everyone jumped back.

Lea swung out his weapons, "What is a Karkinos?"

"It's a friend of the Hydra's," Phil answered running away at top speed! By this time both Batgirl and Iron Man had already gone back to their own worlds.

"Let's just get um'," Ven yelled, he then charged but as he came close the Karkinos grabbed at him with his claws. Ven parried the blow but the crab blind-sided him with the other claw.

He flew back into Lea, who managed to keep his footing as he caught Ven; the pyro laughed, "Mr. One Man Show here should know that he shouldn't need to go things alone."

"Yea," Riku agreed as he held up Way to Dawn, "let's take him together!" Everyone pulled out their weapons and got ready to battle. They all charged him many times; using magic off all types, and moves off all styles. Nothing seemed to phase the monster.

Kairi and Sora were thrown into the stands by one sweep of its claw; Kairi pulled the brunette to his feet, "We need to try something different, like drive forms!" Sora nodded; to his surprise, Kairi ran back out to the battle and yelled, "WARRIOR!" In a flash, she was in her purple attire and Divine Rose was in her hand. Everyone stared at her as she launched into the fray with both Keyblades whirling.

Sora was shocked but he smiled at this surprise. He changed into his Valor form and ran up beside her, "I think we are entitled to an explanation after this, Kairi!"

Kairi batted away a claw and answered, "Of course." She then jumped up onto the claw and ran up to the crab's head; then she began swinging away at the monster's small eyes on stalks. The Karkinos was very irritated at this and began trying to swat her off with its claws. Ven and Sora picked up on her strategy and leapt up onto to monster's back. They warded off the incoming claws as Kairi hacked at its eyes; the others attacked it from all sides, which kept it distracted. Then in one swift motion, the Princess of Heart brought Destiny's Embrace and Divine Rose down hard between the creature's eyes. It roared as its exoskeleton split down the middle leaving its backside wide open.

Then she, Sora, and Ven slammed their Keyblades on its fleshy back. Then Hercules joined them on Karkinos and rammed his fist into it; with a loud moan, the crab monster collapsed. Sora and Ven hopped down and both helped Kairi off the beast's back; she was still in her Warrior Form as the others walked up to her.

"Um, Kairi," Lea asked, "when did you get that?"

She gave them her sweetest smile and answered, "After you left Master Yen Sid's tower."

Goofy scratched his head, "But we didn't know you got them either!"

"Remember Master Yen Sid wanted to talk to me, he sent me to the three fairies and they told me about my Drive Forms."

Lea nodded, "Alright then."

Hercules, Phil, Meg, and Zack approached Kairi and Hercules patted her on the back, "Good going Kairi, you're a hero!"

"Yea," Sora exclaimed, "If I could, I would make you a true hero right now!" Kairi's face reddened deeply.

"Yea well, that's not your department kid," Phil grunted.

Sora hugged her and her face turned even redder; everyone smiled. "But," Phil continued, "There is something in order for you four heroes- to- be."

Lea cocked his head, "And what's that Phil?" The satyr winked at Sora, Donald, Goofy, Zack, and Hercules; who all smiled at one another.

* * *

Later in the Vestibule Phil stood on a pedestal while Lea, Riku, Ven, and Kairi stood before him, Sora and the others stood off to one side watching. Phil rolled out a scroll and read, "For bravery beyond all odds, and heroic actions I do hereby dub thee 'Junior Heroes'! And grant you full access to the Games and…"

Ven cut him off, "Junior Heroes?"

"Yea," the trainer replied, "you guys still don't know what it takes to be a true hero."

Sora laughed, "Don't worry guys; he did the same thing to us."

Meg then came up to the four newly dubbed Junior Heroes and handed them cards that displayed their title; Riku looked at it and smiled, "Thanks Phil, I know that soon we shall become True Heroes." Lea, Ven, and Kairi nodded in agreement. Zack then went over to Riku and handed him a summon gem.

The Keyblade wielder took the gem and looked at it; the gem was green with a black falcon on it with silver wings.

"Uh, what's this for Zack," Riku asked?

Zack shrugged, "I don't need it, so you can have it."

Riku smiled and nodded in thanks. Then the four "junior hero" badges lit up brightly.

Sora looked over at his comrades, "Do any of you want to seal this one?"

Riku stepped up and held out Way to Dawn; he sealed the Keyhole and then turned back to the others.

Zack frowned, "You guys gotta go?" They nodded and turned to go; the warrior quickly grabbed Ven's arm. "Hey when you see Aqua tell her I said hi!"

"Uh," Ven stuttered, "ok." The seven warriors waved to their friends as the headed to the Gummi ship.

On the ship Ven was suspicious about Zack's sudden interest in Aqua; he smiled, the boy probably had a crush on her.

* * *

I was not going to have Zack gone, I know he dies in Final Fantasy but I don't care! He is sticking around! Please read and Review!

Next time the gang takes a splash in another familiar world. While a musical is in production, a sorceress is plotting against a princess. Can they Keybladers save her in time? Next time in **Atlantica!**


	5. Chapter 5: Atlantica

Hey… now we are rolling! I would like to thank kitty1872 for following my story, twilightroxas for favoriting and following, and Akemi kanamaru another monster for favoriting! Let's get going!

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**Chapter 5: Atlantica**

The Gummi ship cruised along at an easy pace. Sora was at the helm, keeping his eyes peeled for familiar worlds to visit. Kairi sat next to him, also on the lookout. He was the first one to spot another world. He knew it at a glace, "Hey Kairi! It's Atlantica!" He ran to inform the others but Kairi was more interested in the tiny specks she could see in the distance that seemed to be coming closer.

She squinted and then saw that they were ships; Kairi gasped, the insignias were familiar. It was Nobodies! She leapt up and ran after Sora. They were discussing whether to go on land or in the sea.

"Guys," she exclaimed!

Lea smiled, "Kairi, looks like we won't get the ocean experience because were going land way."

She face palmed, "That's not what I'm here for! There are Nobody ships coming our way!"

"WHAT!" Riku, Lea, and Goofy ran to the helm but before they reached their destination, a blast rocked the ship to its core. Kairi fell into Sora and the others toppled to the ground.

Another blast rocked the ship and Kairi flew into the button that opens the door to the outside. The door slowly creaked open revealing a Nobody vessel right outside. Ven looked up from where he had fallen and saw the cannons take aim. They blasted the bottom of the ship sending it tilting their way.

This caused the Princess of Heart to lose her balance and she fell out the door into interspace. Ven leaped up and grabbed her hand as she fell. She was hanging out the door as he struggled to pull her back in. Then one of the ship's cannons aimed and hit Ven in the shoulder causing him to let go of Kairi. She screamed as she plummeted downward.

Donald saw her go and quickly sent a blast of magic after her; it enveloped her in a white light and she vanished. By this time, Sora had made his way to the door and had seen her disappear. And he watched as the enemy ships retreated.

Ven hung his head and muttered, "I'm sorry Sora I couldn't hang on."

"It's alright Ven," he comforted, "and Donald, nice shot!"

"Thanks," Donald squawked!

Riku, Goofy, and Lea came back in and the silverette asked, "Where's Kairi?"

"Well, by now she should be under the sea on Atlantica. Luckily Donald zapped her with his magic as she fell from the ship." Sora was silent for a moment then he continued, "You know what, I think they were after Kairi. I mean they seemed to be trying to knock her out of the rocket, and when we got her safely got her to Atlantica the Nobodies retreated."

Lea scratched his head, "I think you're right but what are we gonna do now?"

"Well," Goofy stated, "we could split up. Some of us could go on the surface while the rest of us go after Kairi underwater."

"Nice idea Goof," Lea smirked, "but who will go where?"

Sora leaned against the wall and answered, "Well at least one of us who has been to Atlantica before should go underwater; but I think Riku and I should go after Kairi." Ven nodded in agreement.

"Fine," Donald quacked, "the rest of us will go surface way." Sora smiled and then Donald pointed his wand at them and sent a white beam of magic at the two Destiny Islanders. They vanished, the same way as Kairi, leaving the others behind.

* * *

(Under the sea)

Kairi felt a rush of water replace the cold vastness of space. She had closed her eyes while falling and she kept them closed under the water. Her first thought was, "How am I able to breath under the water?" She felt herself floating slowly downward until she came to rest on a hard substance. Finally, she opened her eyes and she saw she was sitting in a beautiful undersea garden. Many colors of coral flourished around her.

She then looked down at her legs and she gasped loudly; her legs were gone! In their place was a beautiful pink fish tail. She giggled as she lifted it higher and looked at it; the hot pink scales shone in the sunlight that filtered through the water. Her outfit had changed into a loose, fuchsia tank- top.

"Hmm," she mused, "I wonder if they will come to get me?" The answer to her question came when, in a flurry of bubbles, Sora and Riku appeared.

Sora had no shirt on and his legs had changed into a blue dolphin fin; Riku looked the same but his fin was a grey shark fin. She waved and, using her arms more than her fin, swam up to them.

"Hey, nice to see you," she smiled.

Sora noticed that she and Riku were having trouble staying afloat; he smiled as he helped them up, "Here, let me give you a quick swimming lesson." He showed them how to use their fin to stay up and to move, and they soon had it mastered.

"Well," Riku smirked, "I'm glad Lea isn't here to see this or else he would never let me hear the end of it." Kairi and Sora swam around each other laughing. Riku watched them, smiling at his two best friends; then behind them he spotted a merman swimming their way. He was older with a long white beard, his chest was bare, his fin was a sea green, he carried a large gold trident, and he wore a crown on his head.

The merman spoke, "Sora, is that you." They two playful friends stopped and looked at him.

Sora swam up to him and replied, "Yes King Triton."

"It is good to see you again, you are always welcome here. Who are these two?"

Kairi swam up to him, "My name is Kairi, and that is Riku."

"Two more of the Keyblade's chosen," he uttered, "Sora, I would like to speak to the three of you back at the palace." With that, the sea king turned and left and the three followed him through the undersea kingdom. Kairi and Riku looked around with interest since it was their first time there.

Sora was happily chatting with the Sea King, "So, are thing peaceful after Ursula got sunk?"

"Yes."

"Did Sebastian do any more musicals since we left?"

"No, not really, we have been short one important person," King Triton sighed, "she used to really liven up the shows, and so did you, Donald, and Goofy."

Riku's ears perked up at this last part; he swam up and punched Sora in the shoulder, "You were in a musical? When did this happen, Sora?"

"If you really want to know, Riku, the last time I was here the court musician, Sebastian, was putting on a musical. He offered us spots and it sounded like fun, and it honestly was!"

"You will have to show us," Kairi joked. The three friends laughed as they entered the palace.

There sitting on the armrest of the throne was a small red crab; he was reading a sheet of paper when he looked up and exclaimed, "Thank goodness! Sora you came just in time!"

"Hey Sebastian, what's up?"

The crab pulled out a sheet of music, "I am planning a new show for Ariel and Eric that will take place above water and I need someone to fill in some roles!"

"That would be great," Sora smiled, "I'm in." He turned to his two best friends, "What do ya think guys? Wanna do a musical together?!"

Kairi giggled and nodded; Riku crossed his arms but he slowly nodded, "I'll do it, as long as I don't sing."

Sebastian crossed his claws and huffed, "Fine, but if you change your mind I'll have a part for you."

Sora and Kairi laughed at their friend's stubbornness. But no matter what Sebastian or anyone said that could change the Keyblade Master's mind.

Kairi looked at the paper and her eyes widened, "Who are the two lovers mentioned in the song?"

"Why its Ariel and Eric," Sebastian smirked, "after Sora, Donald, and Goofy left last time King Triton saw how in love with Eric Ariel was, so he turned her human and they got married!"

Sora gasped, "They what?!"

"Yes, I let my daughter marry a human, and she has never been happier," the sea king added. Sora put his hands behind his head and smiled brightly and King Triton smiled back.

* * *

(On Land)

The group landed on the seashore in front of a large castle. Lea stared out at the water and said, "I wonder if the others are doing ok."

"Don't worry," Goofy said, "Sora know his way around down there so they'll be just fine." The pyrokinetic turned and looked up at the castle; through a window, he saw a girl about his age with hair about the same shade as his. She was brushing her hair with something; Lea thought it was a fork for a second. She then looked down at the four and gasped.

Ven had watched the whole performance and he smirked, "Nice going Lea, you frightened her." The red head growled.

Then to their surprise, the girl from the window ran out the front gate of the castle and called, "Donald, Goofy!"

Her hair was fiery red, it hung down loosely and went down to about her waist; she wore a light purple gown with a large darker purple collar, a darker purple bow around her waist, a golden necklace, and a gold crown.

The duck and dog exclaimed, "Ariel!" They ran forward and embraced her.

Ariel was laughing loudly now, and then out of the castle came a young man with black wavy hair; he wore a white coat with a long tail, golden buttons, a blue collar, blue sleeve cuffs, white gloves, a white sash, blue pants, and shiny black sea boots.

He came up to Ariel and asked, "You know these people, Ariel?"

"Yes Eric," she said smiling, "Well, two of them." She put her hand on the shoulders of Donald and Goofy. "These two helped me get where I am now, they were two of the three who defeated Ursula with us. This is Donald and Goofy."

He looked over at the other two and asked, "And you two would be?"

"I'm Ventus, call me Ven."

"Name's Lea, got it memorized."

The princess smiled and then looked around, "Where is Sora?"

"That's a little complicated, Ariel was it," Lea smirked, she nodded and he continued, "his girlfriend, Kairi fell into the ocean so that he and his friend Riku are under the sea with her."

Eric smiled, "Then we will probably see them soon."

"Huh, why?"

"Sebastian is doing another musical, except this one is going to be where the people on land can watch."

Lea cocked his head, "So?"

Ariel smiled, "Sora, Donald, and Goofy all stared in the last musical."

Lea covered his mouth and tried to contain a fit of laughter, "A musical… really… oh I can't wait to see this!" Ven chuckled as well.

Donald put his wings on his hips and squawked, "It was fun, and we did very well, for your information!" This comment only succeeded in making the two Keyblade wielders laugh harder.

"Well then," Ariel giggled, "I think I know where this is going, you two probably won't ever let Sora hear the end of this!" They nodded. She and Eric laughed; the princess continued, "You can tease him about it later, let's go inside. Donald, Goofy I want to hear about all your adventures since I saw you last." The four warriors followed the prince and princess into the castle.

* * *

(Under the Sea)

Sora sat with Kairi in Ariel's old grotto, they were looking at a sheet of practice music for the musical. It was the opening song called _Tidelines_. The song was short so Sebastian thought it would be a good one to for practicing.

Riku sat off to the side, he still thought the whole singing idea was superfluous but he had stopped mocking his friends about it; he looked at the two and sighed, "You two are really into that music."

"You sure you don't want to sing Riku?" Kairi asked. The Keyblade Master gave her a look that said, 'really'.

Then Sebastian swam in with a small fish that was yellow with light blue fins and dark blue stripes across his back and fins.

The fish saw Sora and exclaimed, "Sora!"

They swam towards each other and around each other laughing like old friends; Sora said excitedly, "Flounder, it is so good to see you!"

"You too Sora!"

"Flounder here is going to be in the musical too," Sebastian said.

Kairi held up the sheet of music and smiled, "Hey I think I'm ready to do this song."

"Same here."

The crab nodded, "Alright man, would you two be against doing it right now?" They shook their heads. "Alright then, Sora, Kairi, show us what you've got!"

The two swam up together higher up in the grotto. They started to sing…

Sora: _"Coming from two worlds of Land and Sea; Locked apart without a key"_

Kairi: _"Till a night of celebration and tempest; when they met and became each others dearest"_

Sora: _"Now our worlds collide; through one act separation died; the lovers who became a sign; to the connections of our Tidelines"_

Kairi: _"Now our worlds collide; through one act separation died; the lovers who became a sign; to the connections of our Tidelines"_

Both: _"The connections of our Tidelines…."_

They finished the song and Kairi asked, "So, how did we do?"

"Great, I knew it was a good idea to have you two do that song!"

"Good job," Riku said, swimming up to them, "it sounded better than I though it would."

"Thanks," Sora said, "I think."

"It was great," Sebastian said, "and you both sang beautifully, you will get the leads in the musical!" The two high-fived.

They all swam out of the grotto and towards the castle; Flounder was in the back of the group, and he was the only one who spotted the long, sleek barracuda swimming above them. He had often seen one, but this one was different; with a glance towards her friends, he swam after the other fish. She swam through a couple of crevices after it, and into a cave. As she rounded a bend in the cave, she saw it meet up with a mermaid.

She was slim with pale skin, long wavy black hair, a burnt orange tail, gray shells, but the biggest thing was her bright red eyes. She stroked the barracuda sweetly and said, "Thank you Aylin, you have done well." They swam up through a hole in the cave wall, and the fish followed secretly. The two went into a cavern that had an air pocket in it. Flounder came up out of the water and hid behind some rocks that jutted up out of the water.

To his surprise the mermaid and the barracuda floated up into the air; in a flash of light their appearances changed. The mermaid turned into a woman with pale skin, hair made of fire, the same red eyes. She wore a black dress with white flames on the bottom and up the middle ran black laces. Around her waist was a grey belt, over her dress was a sleeveless gray coat, around her neck was a chain with a small ball of fire dangling on in, on her head was a silver headdress with a red crystal in the center, and she had red dangling earrings.

The barracuda turned into a six-inch tall girl with gray skin, white wings, white hair, and black eyes. She wore a dress made of dark red rose petals and brown seaweed.

Flounder thought, "Wow, a pixie and a sorceress!"

The pixie, Aylin, said, "Miss. Sunray what will we do about the Keyblade wielders?"

"Do not worry my dear friend," Sunray said, "they will not be much of a problem, and we actually may be able to use them to our advantage. They are close to the princess, so that might be a problem but we will easily overcome it, if approached the right way. I soon will have revenge!"

"Yes, Ariel will soon be in our clutches," Aylin laughed. "Then Eric will be yours, like he should have been from the beginning."

Sunray smirked, "Yes, and once we have her, and I will finally have the pleasure of killing that wretched girl who stole MY PRINCE!" They laughed and headed deeper into the cave.

Flounder ducked under the water and retraced his steps back to Ariel's old grotto.

When he came in panting everyone turned towards him, "Ariel's in trouble!"

King Triton who had just arrived heard him and hurriedly asked, "What, from whom?"

Flounder took a deep breath and continued, "As we left Ariel's grotto I saw a barracuda, and I decided to follow it. It went into a cave where it met up with a mermaid, and then they went up into a cavern, with an air pocket. Once there the mermaid turned into a sorceress with hair that was made of fire. The barracuda turned into a pixie. They talked about getting revenge on Ariel, because the sorceress, named Sunray, wants Prince Eric. They are going to capture and kill her!"

"Wow," Sora gasped!

King Triton exclaimed, "Alright, Sora you and the others go up to the surface and warn them of this threat!" They nodded and swam upward.

They broke the water's surface near the castle, from the water Sora could see Ariel in her bedroom; he yelled to her, "Ariel! Hey Ariel!" She heard him and looked down at them. Sora waved to her and she waved back.

Sora, Riku, and Kairi swam up to a beach right outside the castle and waited for her. She came, but not alone, Lea, Donald, Goofy, and Ventus were with her.

Lea saw them and burst out laughing, "Oh man, you should see yourselves!"

"Yea, yea, yuck it up Lea," Riku growled, "that's real funny." Lea kept laughing and soon Ven joined him. Riku let it roll off his back and then continued, "We have come up here to warn you that someone is after Ariel!"

"What," Prince Eric came running up, "who is it?!"

"A young sorceress with hair made of fire named Sunray, and a pixie named

Aylin."

Ariel nodded gravely, "Thank you for warning us, we will be on the look out for them." The three in the water nodded. "Oh, and on a lighter note, how is the musical coming along?"

"Great, Sora and I have the leads, Riku refused to sing though," Kairi jauntily said!

"Sora singing, oh I cannot wait to see this; but seeing Riku, I'm guessing if he's not singing he's dancing, that will be an even bigger treat!"

"Lea," Riku stated, "zip your howling screamer!" The silver haired boy then turned and dove under the sea.

Sora looked after his friend and smiled, "That's Riku for you; we should probably get back down there, but don't worry we will watch out for this Sunray and Aylin." Then he also went back underwater; Kairi waved to her friends and followed him.

* * *

She grabbed Flounder and whispered, "Show me where that cavern was!" With a gulp, he led Kairi back to Sunray's cavern. The two were still there. She ducked behind the rocks and looked around for a hiding spot. She saw a ledge that was sheltered and hidden from the view of Sunray and Aylin; she quietly swam up to it and pulled herself up.

From there she heard the sorceress say, "We shall proceed as planned tonight, it will be a night of rejoicing for us tonight."

"Unless we are stopped, somehow they know we are after her so we shall have to be more careful."

"Yes," Sunray smirked, turning in Kairi's direction, "the walls here seem to have ears. Unless…" Then a burst of magic flew from her hands, knocked Kairi further back into the crevice she was hiding in; then some bars of magic came down, and trapped Kairi inside in cave. "We have a spy." They floated over to her and glared menacingly at her.

Aylin laughed, "A Keyblader, well now, this is a surprise."

"You should not have come here young warrior; I knew I felt a presence of light."

"You'll never get away with this, my friends will stop you," Kairi cried! The two laughed; Kairi tried to summon her Keyblade but before she could, Aylin used her magic to put a Keyblade Seal over her.

"Sorry princess, but I will. And afterward, I have heard that Xehanort needs you for some little scheme of his, so I will see what price he will offer for you," Sunray chortled! Then in a flash of light Sunray was back in her mermaid disguise and Aylin was in her barracuda one; with a laugh they dove into the water, leaving Kairi trapped in the crevice.

* * *

(On Land)

Eric was pacing nervously around the castle grounds as Ariel and the others came outside; Ariel sighed and went to her husband, "Eric, if the news is bothering you than try to think about something else."

"No, I can't; I don't want to lose you to some witch!"

"You won't!"

Lea said, "She's right, and we will be beside her and will watch over her; when you are not around we will protect her with our lives!" That reassured Eric, somewhat, but it did not calm him completely. He had begun to think back to his past and try to figure out who would want to kill Ariel for him.

He could only think of one possible suspect, the Lady Ray from the Island of Sicily. She had been the only girl he had gotten close to marrying once; then Ariel rescued him, and she dominated his mind so he had not gone to see her, and then he had married Ariel quickly and suddenly. He could see how it might cause a girl to get angry about those developments. The only problem is that he could not remember what she looked like; he could only recollect her name.

What he did not know was that down on the beach a mermaid and a barracuda came out of the water and onto the land. They changed forms when the hit the solid earth; the mermaid turned into a young girl with wavy blonde hair, red eyes, pale skin; she wore a red shirt, blue skirt, blue jacket, a black belt, red shoes, a silver headdress with a red gemstone, and the barracuda morphed into a chestnut colored cat.

They walked up the beach towards the castle, the girl whistling a merry tune. Ven saw them come up the road and he got a feeling as if something wasn't right about those two. They passed him and he felt darkness around them, especially around the girl. She passed by him with a sinister smirk.

* * *

(Under the Sea)

Sora was getting very worried, Kairi had been missing for about two hours and there was no clue to her whereabouts at all. King Triton had many of his best men looking for her all over the ocean.

Riku was sitting in the palace throne room with Sora, he said, "She has to be in some sort of trouble, Sora, or else she would have come back long before now." Sora sighed, he knew Riku was right but he didn't want to believe it; he got up and swam out of the palace.

He closed his eyes and felt in his heart for Kairi, their connection might help him find her, but it might only work if she was looking for him too. He had tried it the entire two hours she had been missing, but this time he felt her touch in his heart.

He swam back to Riku, "Hey I found out where she is, but we need to move now!"

"Is it the paopu connection?" Riku asked. Sora nodded; they swam away through the caverns that Kairi had gone through until they reached Sunray's cavern.

There, they surfaced and Sora yelled, "KAIRI… ARE YOU HERE!?"

"Sora," came a weak reply, "I'm over here!" They saw her locked in the crevice; she was lying down on the floor with weakness. Sora held out his Keyblade and unlocked her prison. She slipped into the sea; but she was so weak that Sora had to hold her up.

He held her while he and Riku swam back to the palace; everyone was overjoyed to see her unharmed; but Kairi was worried, "Sunray and Aylin went up surface way after Ariel."

The sea king was very worried now, "Sora, you and your friends must go up to the surface and help Ariel!" He pointed his trident at them and orbs of light surrounded them and flew them upward to the surface; the light subsided and they were human.

They took off towards the castle at full speed; Sunray had now entered the castle with no trouble, but all the warriors of light were getting a bad vibe off her. Then Sora, Riku, and Kairi ran into the castle much to the surprise of the others.

"What, how did you get here," Donald asked?!

Riku brushed past him, "Tell you later!" They were too late though, Sunray and Aylin had made their way to Eric and Ariel's chamber. The princess had been alone so the two had easily grabbed her. They changed back to their sorceress and pixie forms too.

Kairi was the first one to make it to there; she made them release Ariel by blasting them with a Triple Fiagara. When the sorceress let go of Ariel she ran to Kairi and took refuge behind her. By that time, all the others had showed up and were taking defensive positions in front of Ariel.

"I guess I should not have underestimated you princess," Sunray snarled! Kairi smirked in reply. Then the sorceress was surrounded in a dark orange aura as she laughed, "I WILL NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE TWICE!" She then pointed a hand at them and a beam of energy shot towards them, Ven barely put up a barrier spell in time. When the shield lowered, Sora shot out in Master Form, taking Sunray by surprise. She wasn't prepared for the barrage of attacks that shot towards her. Only Aylin save her from further attack; the pixie summoned many vines to block Sora and the other's attacks.

Lea countered with a Mega Flare attack that burned down all the vines, and then Donald came at them with an Exo Spark, paralyzing the pixie and greatly harming the sorceress. Goofy followed him with a Tornado attack that knocked the Pixie to the ground. Kairi and Ven both hit them with a Quake; this time the Aylin fell over, unconscious. Riku and Sora finished it off with a duel Shadowbreaker attack.

Sunray staggered backwards and fell to the ground. She reached out and grabbed Aylin and with her last bit of strength, teleported herself away.

Ariel ran into her husband's arms and sighed deeply, "I told you everything would be ok."

Sora and the others looked on smiling; the brunette said, "Glad we could help." The prince and princess smiled at their Keyblader friends then Ariel's crown started to glow brightly.

Sora stepped up, "This one is mine, finally." He sealed the Keyhole and turned to Ariel and Eric, "We have to go but we will be back soon. While we're gone keep a sharp eye out for Sunray."

"Yes, of course," Eric said, "we will be awaiting your return."

* * *

Once back on the Gummi Ship Sora reached into his pocket and pulled out a new Summon Gem. It was red with glowing blue lines all over it. He was just putting it away when an explosion rocked the ship.

Sora ran to the bridge, "What's going on!"

Kairi turned to him, "Those Nobodies that attacked us before are back!"

"And they brought reinforcements," Ven yelled! Another blast rocked the ship again. "Riku is trying to get us to a world, any world, so that we can get out of here!"

"Speaking of that," Lea cried, "there's a world now, let's move!" As they came closer, a Nobody vessel opened up on the sides and two mechanical arms came out; they grabbed the ship and ripped it apart, sending the Keyblade wielders plummeting toward the unknown world.

* * *

Sorry if my song writing stinks… I know it does, really bad too. If you are wondering why it is Kairi that is being targeted the most, well she is the newest warrior. Lea, before he got a Keyblade, was a seasoned warrior but Kairi is brand new at it so she is the easiest target. And there are other reasons that will be revealed later.

It is getting exciting now, next time the crew lands in separate groups around a new world in the midst of its own war. Can they reunite and assist the rebels in battle?

You'll see next time in the **Qin Kingdom!**


	6. Chapter 6: Qin Kingdom (part 1)

I would like to thank HeartofFyrwinde for favoriting and The Unknowing Herald for following my story! I am putting these chapters up fast to make up for the one that took forever.

This is going to be a difficult chapter, this show you probably won't know. It is from a 3d anime in China called Qin's Moon. There is no English dub and the only way I understand it is from the English subtitles, but it is my favorite show ever! It can be found on Youtube if you want to try it out, the people who post it are called Ancientseries.

Again I don't own any of the characters or worlds!

* * *

**Chapter 6: Qin Kingdom **

Ventus awoke in a wooden building, on a pallet. Beside him sat a little girl wringing water out of a cloth.

She had light brown hair pulled back into two high pigtails, was looped around, and attached back under her ears by purple ribbons. Her eyes were large and a deep brown. She was wearing an orange shirt with darker orange flowers on it and black on the edges of the sleeves. Around her waist was a yellow corset with flowers on it, over the corset was a black belt, then below that, the shirt stretched down to below her waist and the bottom covered in black with gray swirling patterns. Under that was a white frilly skirt that went down almost to the tops of her feet, and on her feel were brown reed sandals.

The last thing Ven remembered was the Nobody ship ripping the Gummi Ship apart, then waking up in water. Nearby he saw Kairi on another bed. Ven attempted to go over to her but when he moved, pain shot through his body. He summoned Wayward Wind and tried to cast a Curaga on himself but his magic wouldn't work.

The little girl heard him groan and looked up. She had said in a sweet clear voice, "Hello, my name is Gao Yue but you may call me Yue-er. Don't try to move or your injuries will get worse." Ventus didn't know if Yue-er was really a friend or not, but right now he couldn't do anything if she was an enemy. "Don't worry guh guh, Miss Wong will be here in a minute to assess your injuries.

The door to the room opened and a woman came inside; her hair was black that had two side strands that wound around her ears and the rest, pulled back into a ponytail. She wore an outfit like Yue-er's only it was a light gray with silver edging on it, a silver and black corset was around her waist, under her dress was a black shirt, and on her head was a light gray headband. Her face was stern and it held almost no emotion.

Her eyes looked over the two Keyblade wielders and Ventus couldn't help but wilt under her harsh stare.

"Are you Miss Wong?" She nodded to him.

She looked at Ven and turned away, "I brought both of you in here when you landed at our gates, but I will not treat either one of you."

"What?!"

"I have only three no-saves; I will not save anyone who wields a sword or was wounded by one, I will not save anyone from the nation of Qin, and I will not save anyone with the surname of Ge," she stated, "Both of you wield a sword. I can tell by the development of the muscles in your arms."

"But we're hurt, and we have nowhere we can go!"

A mechanical arm then grabbed his shoulder and Ven turned his head and found himself staring into an old man's face; he had white hair that was in a bun and a long white beard, he was wearing a long, golden robe with chestnut accents, and his arm that had grabbed Ventus was mechanical. He exclaimed, "You heard Miss Wong, now leave, or would you rather me, the old man, have to throw you out!"

Ventus hung his head and attempted to get up, but it was no use; he drew his Keyblade and tried Curaga once again but the result was the same as last time. Then Miss Wong called out, "Wait!" He looked at her and she continued, "You may stay. I will treat you." Ven was confused but he didn't argue; he relaxed on the bed as Miss Wong began to assess the Princess of Heart's injuries.

* * *

(With Sora)

Sora's heavy fall was broken by something, he did not know what, and he didn't have time to think about it because something then landed on him and then another something landed on them.

The two on top of him got off quickly; Sora lay there and then from beneath him came a child's voice, "GET OFF! GET OFF!" Sora rolled off and looked around; next to him were Donald and Goofy. Towering above them was a man; he had a stern face, long black hair that was in a ponytail but he rest hung down on either side of his face, and deep set eyes. He was wearing a white martial arts robe with black edging, brown sandals, and he carried a long sword in a brown scabbard. Next to Sora lay a boy of about twelve or thirteen, he must have been who Sora landed on. He had tall spiky black hair, and dark brown eyes. He was wearing a black shirt with a long baggy collar, over that was a shirt colored a greenish yellow, over that was sweater with one sleeve that was a darker green plaid, around his waist was a white and brown corset type thing tied by a blue belt, brown pants, and brown boots with yellow tips.

The boy rubbed his head and yelled, "WHY DID YOU FALL ON ME!? WHO ARE YOU!?"

Sora held up his hands defensively, "I didn't mean to… I WAS FALLING… I couldn't control where I fell." The boy was still fuming but the man helped him, Sora, and the others up, then he nodded for the Keyblade wielder to continue. "My name is Sora and this is Donald and Goofy."

The man nodded in approval and stated, "I am called Ge Nie and this is Tianming."

"Nice to meet ya," Goofy chortled.

Sora looked around, "Hey where are Riku and the others?"

Tianming looked around, "There is no one around here for miles, and you three are the only people we have seen for a week."

Sora was worried so Ge Nie said, "We can look for them as we travel, but we must leave this place, it isn't safe to stay in one place for too long."

"Could we come with you," Sora asked?

"Yea," Donald added, "we promise we won't slow you down."

"You may come with us," the swordsman answered.

Sora put his hands behind his head, gave his trademark smile, and answered, "Thank you Ge Nie."

Tianming was growing impatient so he yelled, "Let's go then!" Therefore, without another word the strange looking group struck out across the barren landscape.

* * *

(With Riku)

Riku's eyes slowly opened to reveal a dense forest around him. He sat up and looked around for his comrades but he could see no one. His right shoulder was in pain, most likely from the fall. Then he felt a hand on his left shoulder and a familiar voice said, "You alright Riku?" The young Keyblade Master turned and saw Lea; the Pyro helped him up saying, "You didn't answer me… are you alright?"

Riku grabbed his right shoulder, "I think my shoulder is dislocated. Give me a minute to fix it." The silver haired master walked over to a stout tree and rammed into it. Lea heard a loud pop and Riku grunted loudly, "Oww that hurt! It's fixed now."

Then from behind Lea came a boy about Sora's age; he had chocolaty brown hair that went down to his shoulders, and his eyes were a bluish gray. He was wearing an indigo shirt, covered by a purple coat with white sleeve cuffs, his pants were white and baggy and they had gold material wrapped around them. His boots were white with indigo on the bottoms and wrapped around them, around his waist was a white corset thing and a golden belt, and on his forehead was a silver headdress with a turquoise gem in the center and two red gems on either side.

The pyrokentic followed Riku's gaze to the stranger, so he explained, "Riku this is Shou Yu; Shou Yu this is Master Riku."

The boy acknowledged him, "Master Riku, it is nice to meet you."

"Uh," Riku awkwardly said, "just Riku is fine, you don't need to call me master."

Shou Yu nodded and turned away, "I have agreed to take you and your friend to a hidden village for you to stay at." With that, he walked away with the Keybladers following behind.

Riku cuffed Lea on the head, "What in Kingdom Hearts, Lea!? Master Riku, you know I refer just plain Riku!"

"Sorry," Lea said rubbing the sore spot on his head, "but would have rather him call you Mister Riku." The young master looked at him quizzically so Lea explained, "Ok, Shou Yu is really big on honor and since I'm older than him, actually by almost ten years, he calls me Mister Lea. I gave him your title as a master to spare you that, and this is the thanks I get."

"Alright Lea, I will let it go this one time." They continued too follow him, silently through the forest. As they walked they passed by sentries on duty, all of them looked warily at the two strangers as they passed but they let them pass. The three passed through the trees and into a clearing where a small village stood. Inside were many men, all who stared at the Keyblade wielders as they passed by.

Shou Yu led them to the central structure, inside stood two men, one was older, and one was younger. The elderly man was tall with long white hair, a white beard, a stern face, and deep set eyes; he word a long blue robe with gold accents and trimming.

The other man was a few years older than Lea with short scraggly brown hair, a short brown beard, and mustache; he wore a sage colored shirt, brown pants, and brown sandals.

"Master Riku, Mister Lea," Shou Yu said, "This is Master Fan and my uncle, Xiang Liang.

"Hello, nice to meet you," Riku said while he and Lea shook their hands, "um, Master Fan, have there been any sightings of people like us, because we are missing most of our comrades."

"No."

Xiang Liang cocked his head and asked, "How many more are in you group?"

"Five," Lea answered, "and their names are Sora, Donald, Goofy, Ventus, and Kairi."

The Master nodded, "Shou Yu, please tell the men to keep an eye out for strangers and if they see any to ask if they are one of those five." The young warrior nodded and headed out to do the task. "Master Riku, Lea," Master Fan said sternly, "we welcome you both here but, if we discover you or any of your comrades are spies we will kill you."

Lea gave them a friendly smirk and replied cheerily, "Don't worry about that, Master Fan, we're the good guys."

The two men looked at each other and then back at the young Keyblade wielders; Xiang Liang said, "Alright, when Shou Yu returns he will take you to where you will be staying."

* * *

(With Kairi)

Kairi awoke in an unfamiliar wood cabin; she lay on a raised wooden bench, beside her sat a large basin on a stool. Her eyes widened as she saw Ven lying on a similar bench, his eyes closed and he wasn't stirring. She tried to rise, but pain shot through her body.

She groaned in pain and, as if in response, a girl of about twelve walked in; Kairi asked her, "Where am I, and who are you?"

"You are in the Mohist's Medical village," the girl answered, "my name is Gao Yue but I am also called Yue-er."

"Hello, I'm Kairi, what happened to me and my friend Yue-er," the red head asked? The building door opened an elderly man and a woman walked in.

The elderly man went over and lightly shook Ventus, who awoke with a start. He noticed that Kairi was awake, "Hey Kairi, you doin' ok?"

"Yea, I'm fine," she told him with a smile, "what happened? I only remember the ship being torn apart."

"Well yea, and after that we apparently we landed outside the gates of this villiage," he answered nervously, "and as far as I can tell we are the only ones in our group that landed in this area." The Princess of Heart looked past Ventus to the two standing behind him; he followed her gaze and then he told her, "Oh, Kairi this is Miss Duanmu Wong and Master Ban."

"Ventus," Miss Wong cut in, "Master Ban is going to take you to a separate building and some of the Mohist brothers will treat your wounds." He nodded slowly and the old man helped him off the pallet and out the door. Yue-er shut the door and Miss Wong began to examine her injuries; after a good while she stopped, went, and talked quietly with the little girl, who walked out.

"Miss Wong is it bad?" Kairi asked.

"Well," she said, "you have a lot of bruises, and your left ankle is sprained. Actually, the fact that you and Ventus survived the incident with little injuries is a miracle. The bruises should heal fast but the sprain will take a little longer." Kairi sighed, and Miss Wong continued, "It should only take a week, since it is a minor sprain."

"Kairi jie jie, Sister Wong wants you to drink this; it will help ease the pain in your body."

She took the bottle and downed the contents, "Thank you, and just call me Kairi."

* * *

(With Sora)

Sora and the others across the barren landscape silently; they passed by wrecked carts, burned villages, and crude gravestones that marked the fallen members of many families. Sora looked at the devastation and was struck by grief; back in Land of Dragons he had seen things like this before but never on such a grand scale.

A single tear ran down his cheek; Tianming noticed it and asked, "Sora, why are you crying?"

The brunette brushed the tear away and replied, "Oh, it was seeing all this destruction and pain. It breaks my heart to see how these people have suffered."

"But you don't even know them," the boy asked, "Why are you sad for them?"

"Tianming," Ge Nie stated abruptly, "You want to become strong?" The boy nodded. "Remember my lesson on compassion, the strong man helping the weak; Sora is feeling compassion for others. He may not know them but he can still be compassionate for them."

Tianming glanced around and mused, "I never thought about it that way."

Sora was curious of this development so later he went to Tianming and asked, "So you want to be strong; that sounds like the same thing as wanting to be a true hero?"

"Yes, I want to be strong like Uncle!"

Sora chewed on this for a minute and continued, "Being strong and being a true hero sound about the same; I have been officially dubbed a true hero." Sora looked up at darkening sky, "See Tianming." The boy looked up and among the stars Sora, Donald, and Goofy's image glittered brightly; he was astonished. "And Tianming, I know what it takes to be like that and I can tell you." His eyes turned back to Sora and begged him silently to tell him. "Tianming, your strength and power comes from your heart and if your heart is alone it won't be strong. Something makes it grow, and become stronger. Also, your power comes from another thing, but I have a feeling I should let you figure out what that is. When you are ready you will know what it takes and you will be strong."

The other three had listened in on the two boy's conversation; Donald and Goofy smiled and winked at each other, and Ge Nie was glad, though he didn't show it, that his young charge was growing in experience and becoming stronger in the exact way Sora had told him too.

They camped that night in the ruins of a small house; the next day they walked on. The group soon came upon a large chasm with only one way to cross it; a small rock bridge spanned the width of the gorge.

"Uh," Donald squawked nervously, "do we **have** to cross that?" The swordsman looked at the duck and slowly nodded. But as they began to cross Ge Nie began to tense up; Sora saw and did likewise, he had the same feeling as the swordsman, that trouble was coming their way.

When they reached the center the group halted; in the silence that followed all could hear the pounding of horse and human feet coming from both sides of the rift. A black shape moved in their direction from both sides; soon both sides were blocked by soldiers, both mounted and on foot.

Goofy pulled out his shield and stammered, "Wh… who are these guys?"

"The Qin army's Dragon Calvary," Ge Nie grunted, "it is made up of three hundred soldiers."

"THREE HUNDRED!"

A tall man in regal armor and on horseback, most likely a general, bellowed, "Surrender Ge Nie, we have been authorized by the Emperor to bring you in!"

Sora looked at Ge Nie for an answer but the man was stiff as a board; the Keyblader then turned his attention to the soldiers around them. They stared at Ge Nie, they were shaking and sweat dripped from their foreheads; some, probably the newer ones, even looked at Sora and his Keyblade.

"Tianming," the swordsman said calmly, "look at their faces, there is fear in them. Remember to not show fear that is the sign of a weak man."

They mage duck looked around and wondered aloud, "Why aren't they attacking us?"

"They are afraid of Uncle and his powerful sword!" The young boy was exhilarated at the thought of a battle coming up. Sora's eyes, burning with fierceness, swept the crowd of Qin warriors. One soldier was more unstable than the rest, when the boy's eyes met his he lost his composure and loosed an arrow he had been holding taut.

"YOU FOOL," the general roared! The early arrow sped towards the group, but in less time than it took one drop of sweat to fall to the ground Ge Nie had unsheathed his sword and had cut down the arrow. Then the entire Dragon Calvary charged, swords drawn, spears out, and bows strung.

* * *

(Later that day with Sora)

Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Ge Nie lay around a fire that Tianming had built; the group had stopped after walking for a couple of hours after the battle. The young boy marveled at how the four warriors never complained about their extensive injuries, but now that they were resting, the pain seemed to get worse.

During the battle, the three old comrades discovered that not only did their magic not work, but also Sora's drive forms wouldn't either. Now Sora reached into his pocket and pulled out anything that could possibly heal them. He sighed in frustration; the only things he had were three potions, an ether, and a pancea. He tossed the potions to Donald, Goofy, and Ge Nie; he put the ether away and held onto the pancea.

"That will heal your injuries," the brunette said cheerfully.

"But Sora," Goofy asked, "what about you, you're hurt too."

Sora smiled, "I'll be ok, I'll sleep some and take a pancea when I wake up and see if it helps." Then without a word, he lay down, rolled over, and slept. The two from Disney Castle downed the potions but the sword-master slipped his into his robe; Donald and Goofy soon fell asleep. Then Ge Nie went over to the Keyblade warrior and retrieved the pancea. He drank it and a small amount of his pain went away; he then lifted Sora's head and slowly poured the potion down his throat. Then he set Sora's head down, moved to the other side of the fire, and slept.

Sora was awakened a few hours later by a loud explosion; above him the remains of a firework dissipating in the sky. Tianming was holding a burning stick and was looking up in shock.

"Nice job Tianming," Sora sarcastically said. The child gave a sheepish grin; the Keyblade wielder then noticed his wounds were gone, "What happened, how am I cured?!"

Tianming pointed at Ge Nie, "When you were asleep Uncle drank the Pancea and gave you the potion." Sora looked gratefully over at the sleeping master. The brunette noticed that two birds were roasting over the small fire, "Really Tianming, we don't have time to eat a four course meal, we need to get moving when the others wake up Then all around them men came out of the trees, surrounding them. Sora jumped to his feet and drew out Ultima Weapon as the circle closed in around them.

* * *

(With Riku and Lea)

Lea and Riku had been at the village for about a day and they had found out who the group living there were from a kingdom, that the Qin Empire destroyed called Chu. Shou Yu was actually a member of the royal family in Chu, the last member.

The last hour they had spent in the central building watching Shou Yu train. Both of them had to admit that the boy was a fantastic warrior; anyone who faced him was beaten.

The pyro whispered to Riku, "You know, you really could go in there and show that rookie a thing or two."

"No Lea, I'm not going to do that," he answered, "but if you want to, be my guest." Lea gave a mischievous grin, and to Riku's pleasant surprise Lea went over to Master Fan and Riku knew what he was asking. The master nodded in reply.

"Shou Yu, Lea would like to face you in combat," he said.

The boy gave a large grin as Lea came out onto the main floor, "Don't take it easy, and if you want, let's make this interesting by using real weapons." He grabbed a sword off a rack nearby. Lea gave a huge smile, a ring of fire around his left hand caused his chakram to appear, and his Keyblade came into his right. Everyone watching, except for Riku, was amazed.

Shou Yu was excited at the challenge, and Lea made the first move. He flung his chakram at Shou Yu, who dodged cleanly, but he was blindsided by Blaze Bond. Lea knocked Shou Yu back and he lost his footing for a moment but he regained it in time to dodge another blow from Lea's Keyblade.

Riku yelled out, "Nice going hot head!" Lea rolled his eyes but kept on battling.

Shou Yu leapt around the building, using the walls as launching pads, and slammed his foot into Lea's back. He fell to the ground hard and his blade and chakram flew from his grasp. The younger warrior stood over him smirking, but as soon as his back was turned Lea's eyes shot open. He summoned Blaze Bond and hit Shou Yu with the flat. The boy flew forward but was able to stay on his feet.

"Rule one when fighting with me, make sure I am out before you turn your back, got it memorized," Lea exclaimed.

"Alright," Shou Yu said, "memorized!" Then the red head swung his sword downward at him. Lea's eyes widened in shock as the boy caught the blade mid-swing. The pyro kept pushing but the younger boy's strength was unnatural!

They were still locked in this position when Xiang Liang came over to Riku and commented, "Master Riku, that companion of yours is quiet the warrior."

"Yes he is," the young master responded, "but, his fiery temper can get the best of him at times."

Xiang Liang laughed quietly as he turned back to watch the struggle, but it was cut short when one of the men ran in and hollered, "A signal firework has been lit!" The combatants backed off from one another, the men started to leave and the Keyblade wielders followed. Shou Yu, who had left later, soon caught up and clapped a hand to the pyro's back, "It was an honor fighting such a formidable opponent as you, Mister Lea."

"Same to you Shou Yu," he answered. They caught up to the others who had formed a circle and were drawing it in.

Then Riku heard a child's voice cry, "You… you weird people! Leave us alone!" The three pushed their way forward to see inside the circle.

Riku smiled at what he saw and called, "Hey, Sora, how ya doing?" Inside the ring was a campfire with Donald, Goofy, and another man sleeping around it; standing up was a little boy with a large sword in his hands and Sora, Keyblade drawn.

Sora lowered his blade and exclaimed, Riku, Lea, we've been looking all over for you two, and boy am I glad to see you'll!" The two put a hand on the brunette's shoulders.

"Master Riku," Shou Yu wondered aloud, "you know these people?"

Lea answered him, "Well Sora here we know, the sleeping dog is Goofy, and the sleeping duck is Donald. The other two, I don't know."

"Sora who are these weird people?" the child yelled.

Sora rolled his eyes and replied sharply, "Tianming, calm down, they are friends." He wasn't convinced so Sora continued, "Riku has been my friend forever, and I trust Lea with my life! I don't know the others, but if Riku is with them then they are good people."

"NO," Tianming yelled, "they are bad people!"

Sora opened his mouth to try to reason with the dogmatic kid, but Shou Yu stepped forward and said curiously, "Look at that sword, hey let me see it!"

"NO, you're bad people!" Tianming swung the blade at him and he dodged easily. Shou Yu kicked the sword out of his grasp and then kicked the boy backwards. The sword spun in the air and the juvenile warrior caught it neatly.

At all the commotion Donald and Goofy woke up to, the sight of Shou Yu observing the sword closely, Goofy asked sleepily, "What is going on here?"

Tianming picked himself up and yelled, "You bad person, give me back Uncle's sword!" Shou Yu held the little boy off with one hand as he kept on looking at the magnificent blade.

"Who was on sentry duty here," he asked his men?

"Li," was the reply.

Sora was confused, "Someone was on duty here, where is he? We saw no one." Then, as if in response, a man staggered forward out of the trees and fell down on his face, dead. Everyone summoned their weapons and tensed.

Shou Yu turned as Goofy yelled, "Look out behind you!" He saw a large dark shape leaping towards them.

* * *

Another cliffhanger, oh yea! I hope the story wasn't too confusing with all the Chinese names and stuff.

Next chapter we'll continue the journey. The group with Sora and Riku is attacked by a mysterious enemy… twice! And why did Miss Wong let Ven and Kairi in? You'll see next time in **Qin Kingdom part 2!**


	7. Chapter 7: Qin Kingdom part 2

I know these chapters might be confusing but I hope yall like it still! We'll wrap up Qin Kingdom in this chapter.

I would like to thank Aizawa Li Syaoran Vessalius, Dracula X, Greymon Leader, and Twilightroxas7 for favoriting my story! Also kitty1872, Twilightroxas7, Beechan88, and TerraKH for following my story! YOU GUYS ALL ROCK! Now let's get to the story….

* * *

**Chapter 7: Qin Kingdom part 2**

Ventus and Kairi walked down the building stairs so they could get outside after being inside for about a day. Both were weak from lying down and from extended effects of the anesthesia. Kairi was very glad that Ven was with her but she missed Sora so much, she closed her eyes and pictured that goofy grin he always had plastered on his face.

"Hey," Ventus inquired, "you ok?" She slowly nodded and looked around at the small village that had become their home for the last day Duanmu Wong and Yue-er were coming in the gates after gathering herbs for medicine, the little girl smiled brightly at Kairi.

"Ven, you can go now, I'm fine," the red head stated.

Ventus acknowledged this, "Alright, I told Master Ban I was going to help chop firewood today anyway." He took off towards the pile of wood that was a tall as the buildings around them. Kairi trotted after the doctor and the girl as fast as she could.

"Miss Wong," she cried, "please wait for me!" They did and she panted, "Thank you, I was wondering if I could help you treat the patients. I may not know much but I can learn easily from observing you and Yue-er."

Yue-er was overjoyed, "Oh Kairi jie jie this is wonderful!"

"It's just Kairi, please."

"Yes, you may help Kairi. Now that you are almost all the way healed you need to do some work," Miss Wong said. She followed the two into another building and began to work.

* * *

(With Sora, Riku, Lea, Donald, and Goofy)

A huge, muscular man, with tan skin, he had two red tattoos on both sides of his chest, and red veins were clearly visible on his arms and legs. Around his neck was an iron collar with a chain attached to it, on both his wrists and ankles were brown gauntlets with blades on them, he had a thick brown belt around his waist, he had large baggy yellow pants that went down to his knees, and sticking out from his belt were large red pieces of cloth. He growled like an animal, as he looked about at all the people.

Some of the men charged him only to be knocked back, or killed. Sora and Riku leapt at him and sliced at him with their blades; they made contact but the man wasn't fazed at all.

"Go away," Tianming yelled as he threw a pheasant, that had been roasting on the fire, at him, "go away you big wild bear!" The man got the bird right in the mouth and swallowed it whole. Everyone was stunned but Shou Yu reacted swiftly and kicked the guy in the chin. The 'big wild bear' just growled loudly, grabbed the boy by his foot, and threw him across the clearing. He almost hit a tree but Lea jumped over, grabbed him, and pulled him out of the way.

Donald and Goofy leapt towards the enemy but with one swipe of his hand they flew backwards, Sora caught them saying, "This guy is sturdier than a steel door!"

Then the young boy then yelled, "Take this big wild bear!" Then he threw a second pheasant at him, and again the man swallowed it whole. Riku was about to make a sarcastic remark when he saw the lit branch and the firework in Tianming's hand. To confirm his suspicions a small explosion came from inside the big man and smoke came out of his mouth.

"Good job Timing," Goofy said.

"It's Tianming, Goofy."

"Oh yea, good job Tianming!" Then the 'big wild bear' fell flat on his face. Everyone backed up and sighed heavily in relief.

Then Sora went to his silver haired friend and asked, "You introduced them to us but not us to them."

"Oh sorry," Riku shrugged, "this is Shou Yu." The warrior nodded to the Keyblader.

Then behind them the large man stirred, everyone turned and to their unpleasant surprise, he stood up. Sora and the others summoned their weapons but out of nowhere, Ge Nie's sword came flying in their direction and slit the giant man's throat then it embedded itself in a tree on the other side of the clearing. He toppled to the ground and Sora turned and saw Ge Nie standing up his arm stretched out. He had thrown the sword, and then the master collapsed.

"Master Nie," Sora yelled as he ran to the swordsman's side along with Donald, Goofy, and Tianming. You didn't have to be a medical professional to see how serious his injuries were.

Master Fan and Xiang Liang came over and said, "We must leave this place, our enemies have discovered us. We will bring him along and find someone to treat him."

"Sora, do any of your friends have any of those drinks that healed you guys since you're out?" Tianming asked. Lea and Riku both searched their pockets thoroughly but shook their heads.

Master Fan turned to his men and ordered, "Get ready to leave and bring Master Nie along." Riku and Lea walked over and carried the swordsmaster, who had now gone unconscious, back to the village.

* * *

(With Ventus and Kairi)

Kairi, now fully recovered, carried a tray of bandages to one of the buildings as she saw Ven coming her way; his face carried a smile almost exactly like Sora's as he said, "Glad you're doing better, Kairi."

She smiled, then looked at him, and said, "Hey, you know those three "no- saves" of Miss Wong's?"

"Yea, she told me about them."

"The one about wielding swords applies to us, so I wonder why she decided to let us stay." Kairi asked.

"Dunno." He shrugged and then turned and headed towards the woodpile where Master Ban was waiting for him, ax in hand.

The red head was curious, she went into one of the far buildings where Yue-er and Miss Wong were working; they didn't look up when she came in, they were too engrossed in their work. Kairi set down the tray and began to help treat the patient but as she did she asked, "Excuse me Miss Wong; I wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"One of your 'no- saves' is that you will not save anyone who wields a sword, but me and Ven both wield swords and you know this so why did you let us in?"

The doctor looked at her and answered, "Your swords are Keyblades, and they are the most revered blades in all the worlds. Their wielders are mostly peacekeepers and so it is our duty to assist them whenever we get the chance. You are lucky Ventus revealed his sword before I put you out or you would be outside, still injured, and the wounds would have gotten worse by now."

"Yes," Kairi said thoughtfully, "thank you, for taking us in."

"Kairi, you are welcome, and I will tell you that I do not regret my decision." Kairi smiled at the doctor who returned with a nod of her head, but Yue-er came over and wrapped her arms around the Keyblade wielder. Kairi also didn't regret being dumped here by the ship, it was a great thing, and she knew it with all her heart.

* * *

(With Sora and the others)

It had taken less than an hour for the entire group of people in the Chu village to be packed, in carriages, and gone. As Sora and the others rode along atop the carriages, the same scenery Sora, Donald, and Goofy had seen as they had walked with Ge Nie and Tianming flashed past them. Riku and Lea were dumbfounded at all the devastation around them.

There were two carriages; the first one had, the now conscious, Ge Nie sitting inside and Sora, Riku, Lea, and Shou Yu on top. The second, held their stuff and on top was Donald, Goofy, and Tianming. All was quiet until a pebble hit the Chu prince on the back of the head. He turned and the swordmaster's apprentice was grinning from ear to ear.

Sora rolled his eyes and Shou Yu turned away from the immature kid until another pebble hit his head. He snapped, soon he was turned around and they were chunking stones at each other. This went on for a good while until one of the stones hit Master Fan, who was riding his horse ahead of the carts, in the back of his head. At that moment, all foolishness stopped and everyone atop the wagons ducked down, hoping that he wouldn't blame them for that huge knot that was beginning to form on the back of his head.

* * *

A few hours later Riku was getting antsy, he had this feeling that they were being followed, but every time the turned around all he could see was the landscape and an occasional wolf. This time the feeling was keeping him from thinking about anything else so he turned and his eyes grew wide.

Following them was at least a score of wolves and they were all rabid looking. He tapped Lea on the shoulder and the pyrokinetic spun around and looked in the direction Riku was staring.

All he could say was, "That's not good, I'm thinking."

"I thought the same." Then from the right side, another group of wolves, about six of them, joined the pursuit. The silverette growled, "That's it!" He swung down, hanging on to the cart, opened the carriage door, and swung inside.

Ge Nie was fully awake now but he didn't seem surprised at Riku's sudden entrance, "Young Master Riku, what is it?"

"Master Nie," he began, "there are over a score of wolves tailing us. I don't know if this any cause for alarm but I have a bad feeling about it."

The master's voice became somewhat urgent as he told Riku, "Open the curtains, I must speak to Master Fan." He did and Shou Yu, who had moved into the driver's seat, hailed his master. Ge Nie told Master Fan, "This situation is very dangerous right now; we are being followed by Grey Wolf King."

Xiang Liang, who had also come up, looked nervous, "Grey Wolf King! The member of the assassins group, Quicksand?!"

"The same, but they will not attack us until it is completely dark. We must do what we can to stay ahead of them." Tianming, Donald, and Goofy were transferred to the first carriage as Master Fan and Xiang Liang climbed on too. The horses they had been riding were hooked up to the wagon to pull it.

Trying to ease the tension Shou Yu offered the others a drink of a strong wine, all but Tianming refused. The sun began to set and the wolves closed in and surrounded them.

Now Sora turned around and to his horror he could see a dark, humanoid shape leaping about the, now over a hundred fold, wolf pack; he turned and said, "Um guys, I can see that Grey Wolf King behind us!" All they boys turned and saw the figure, all their eyes widened, and the color flew from Donald and Goofy's faces.

The horses pulling the cart were giving their all but it wasn't enough, they soon had to stop because of all the wolves in their path. Sora and the others readied their weapons and waited for the eminent battle to begin.

A swift movement in the dark caught Riku's attention then one of the men escorting the wagon fell down, blood dripping from his neck. The same thing happened to all the other men. In an instant, the figure was up there with them and facing Shou Yu.

"Shou Yu look out," yelled Lea! The Chu prince ducked swiftly as long, metal claws sliced at him. All of a sudden, Tianming drank that wine from Shou Yu and then he spit out fire! The Grey Wolf King fell smoldering, then Lea lit up his chakram and their assailant was revealed.

He had a muscular build, his hair was black and stringy, and he had five- o- clock shadow. He wore a black long-sleeve shirt covered by a sort of black vest; on his wrists were thick gauntlets that had three metal claws attached to them. His pants were black and the boots he wore were a dark brown. But the most noticeable thing was the metal mask he wore; it carried the shape of a wolfs face and the eyes glowed a sinister green.

"Uh," the pyro said uneasily, "this ain't Halloween… what's with the wolfish getup?" The man answered with a snarl and a slash with his claws.

Sora shrugged, "Guess he didn't like you dissing his wolf guise." The wolf king leapt at them but was stopped by a sword; before them stood Ge Nie, ready for battle.

Then Donald saw blood dripping from the swordsman's hands, and so did their aggressor, "How can you hope to defeat me Ge Nie when you are already wounded?" Ge Nie just held his sword, unmoved by the jest. Then the clash began. They battled fiercely with everyone watching, Goofy had to jump back when one of Grey Wolf King's claw swipes came to close to his nose. In a terrific flurry of attacks, Ge Nie sent the assassin down, but before he could finish him, the wolf king leapt off the cart and fled.

"Glad that's over," Sora said. Then the wolves came together as darkness seeped from them, they merged into a single being that began to rise up and come in their direction.

Lea scowled at Sora, "It was… TILL YOU JINXED IT!" Sora gave a sheepish smile that soon faded as the creature gained a final shape; it was a giant wolf with glowing green eyes, and in between its eyes was the heartless symbol.

"Just our luck," Riku sighed, "not a single heartless in this world, till now!" The Ire Wolf heartless sprung at them and Riku had just a second to summon his blade and hit it in the chin as it came at them. "Guys, if we are going to fight we need to get off the wagon now!" Sora, Donald, Goofy, Lea, and Riku jumped off as the silverette yelled, "Get going we'll catch up!" The carriage drove a short distance away and then stopped, Shou Yu ran over and stood beside them.

"Get going," Donald yelled!

The prince stood, unmoved, and replied, "Not a chance duck!" Donald glared at him but before he could rebuttal, the Ire Wolf leaped in among them and lashed out with his teeth and paws. Lea threw his chakram into its mouth and kept its jaws open as Shou Yu and Riku jumped in and began hacking away at his mouth.

The Heartless bearing down on the weapon so the two warriors vacated the monstrous jaws while Sora and Donald paralyzed it with thundaga spells; Shou Yu yelled, "Go for the legs, if you get it off its feet we can take it down!"

"Got it," Riku agreed, "Goofy, Lea, pick a leg and take it down!" They each began slashing away at the creature's front legs. It soon fell to the ground, Goofy began bashing it with his shield, and Donald shot it in the mouth with a triple Fiagara. Shou Yu and Sora jumped up on the Ire Wolf's head and they brought their swords down hard on its skull. With an unnatural cry of agony, the Heartless evaporated and a large heart flew up into the sky.

They stared after it and then turned back to the wagons. Ge Nie was now looking worse for wear after the clash with Grey Wolf King and his wounds had opened up wider than ever. They gathered around him and looked on in worry; anyone could see that there was only a slim chance of survival for the swordsmaster.

Lea slumped against the cart and grumbled, "Now what do we do, he is in even worse shape now!"

Master Fan was going reply but he saw two figures coming out of the mist towards them slowly.

"Who's that," Donald asked.

* * *

(With Ventus and Kairi)

Ventus walked into the gates carrying a bag of herbs, Kairi and Yue-er followed him talking and giggling. Kairi was telling the little girl about her, Riku, and Sora's life on the islands. Then Duanmu Wong called for the three of them to come to her.

"Ventus, Kairi, Gao Yue I need you to do something for me," she told them, "Kairi, could you please assist me in treating some of the newer patients. Ventus and Gao Yue there are some guests coming our way and I want you to meet them and lead them here."

Ventus was confused, "Why can't they find it on their own?"

"Because, Ven guh guh, the way to here is secret and you have to know the way to be able to find It.," Yue-er told him. With a nod, the blonde and the little brunette left the village while the crimson went with the doctor.

They took two boats across the silent lake before the village and went across the barren land. The two walked along quietly, then Ventus heard a familiar voice say, "Now what do we do, he is in even worse shape now." He dropped back behind Yue-er and let her appear before him. The group saw her and the lantern she held first.

"Hello," she told them, "my name is Gao Yue but I am also called Yue-er. Miss Duanmu Wong sent me and my friend from the Mohist Medical Village to bring you there."

An old man with long white hair, and an esteemed look said happily, "Great, friends from the Mohists."

"But, Gao Yue," a younger man with a brown beard asked, "who is your companion?" The blonde boy smirked happily and stepped into the light cast by the lantern. He saw the faces of Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, and Lea light up with joy.

"Where in Kingdom Hearts have you been Ven," Lea exclaimed!?

Sora looked around and asked, "Have you seen Kairi?"

"Oh, Kairi jie jie," Yue-er said excitedly, "she is back at the village helping Miss Wong." Sora sighed in relief and Riku nudged him playfully. The little girl was happy, "Let us get to the village." She turned and everyone followed with Riku and Xiang Liang carrying Ge Nie on a large plank of wood. The group followed Ventus and Yue-er to the two boats, they climbed in, and the two who had come this way pushed the boats out into the water and began steering them across the lake.

Sora, as they went along, saw Tianming staring at Yue-er dreamily; Sora couldn't help kind of seeing himself in the swordsman's young charge, and Kairi in the little Mohist girl.

They floated on the calm lake for the entire night and when dawn began to approach the little girl stood up and held the lantern; then she unscrewed the cap and hundreds of fireflies flew out. It was the most glorious sight the friends had ever seen in their lives, but Tianming wasn't looking at the fireflies, he was looking at Yue-er. Lea noticed this and elbowed the young boy in the side jokingly.

Then before the boy had a chance to react, the boats pulled up to a small wharf on a tiny island, and before them stood a good size village with large wooden gates. In front of that was a woman, Ventus and Yue-er stepped out of the boats and stood beside her. The others got out of the boats as well.

"Miss Wong," Ventus told the woman, "they have an injured person in their party, as well as some of mine and Kairi's companions"

She looked down at the unconscious form of Ge Nie; it was a familiar sound to Ventus when she said, "Sorry I will not treat him."

"He was hurt assisting us in warding off a Qin attack, and you will not treat him," Master Fan exclaimed!

She looked over at Ventus, wanting him to give the explanation, so he pointed to the sign that hung above the gate, "Those are Miss Wong's three 'no saves'. They are 1. She will not save anyone who wields a sword, 2. She will not save anyone from the nation of Qin, and 3. She will not save anyone with the surname of Ge."

She bent over the swordsman's figure and told them plainly, "The muscles in his arms tell me that not only is he a swordsman, but he is also a master. That is against one of my three 'no saves'."

"You weird lady," Tianming yelled, "what do you have against Uncl…" Sora swiftly put a hand over the boy's mouth.

"I am sorry but you will have to leave," the doctor told them.

Donald was fuming, "But what about Master Nie!?"

The gates opened and Master Ban came out and yelled, "You all heard Miss Wong, so get out! Or would you rather me, the old man, throw you out!?" Ventus looked at them sympathy then his eyes widened.

"Miss Wong Sora, Riku, and Lea are Keyblade wielders too. Could you take in Master Nie because of that?" She shook her head and Ventus looked down sadly. Then from behind the partially open gates came a loud gasp.

"SORA!" Kairi burst out of the gates and tackled Sora in a bear hug. They fell to the ground in a heap, laughing the entire time. Lea looked at them with a sly glance, Riku smiled at them, Ventus crossed his arms and nodded slowly, Donald and Goofy grinned madly, Shou Yu smiled, and Yue-er giggled happily.

Sora was so happy to see her, "Oh Kairi I was so worried about you! I'm so glad you're alright!" He stood and helped her to her feet and when they saw everyone was looking at them they quickly backed away from each other, faces bright pink.

"Ventus, Kairi go with them," Miss Wong said sternly, "they are your comrades so go. Everyone go, you have heard my answer." With a deep sigh, Lea and Riku bent down and picked up Ge Nie, as they did Lea tripped and the Ge Nie's sword clattered to the ground revealing the writing on the blade near the hilt. Miss Wong cried, "STOP!" All halted and turned to her as she said, "The patient and the child may stay but no one else." The boys carried the swordsmaster in and laid him down.

As they turned to go Tianming cried after them, "Bye Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, and Lea… come back again!"

Yue-er ran to Kairi and Ventus saying, "Kairi jie jie, Ven guh guh please come back soon."

"We will mei mei," Kairi said warmly, causing the girl to giggle with joy. She went into the village as Shou Yu and his companions went into the boats to leave.

"Goodbye Master Riku, goodbye Mister Lea," the young Chu prince called out. The group waved as they floated out of sight.

Goofy looked around, "So how do we get out of here?"

All were hushed until Ven said, "I know, but we'll have to get out of Interspace fast for it to work." They all nodded and got to work.

* * *

There is some explanation of some of the Chinese words used in the last two chapters. Jie jie, and guh ghu are terms used to address people older than you; jie jie means older sister, and guh guh means older brother. When Kairi called Yue-er mei mei she was calling her little sister.

Please read and review! Now next time the gang is back in Radiant Garden to get the information they need but there is a problem. The computer systems are being messed with by a User hating program and it's up to the gang as well as the former Organization XIII members to save the day. Next time in **Radiant** **Garden/ Space Paranoids!**

* * *

I am starting something at the end of each chapter; you don't have to read it if you don't want to, but it's there. I hope these devos will encourage you in your life!

* * *

No- Saves

In this story Miss Wong has three "No-Saves". If someone meets all, or any of these, she will not help them. She only goes against them when it's a special condition, like with Ven, Kairi, and Ge Nie.

Many people think that because of who they are or what they've done God will not accept them. That is not true! John 3:16 states, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that **WHOEVER** believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life."

No matter what you've done God still loves you; all you have to do is ask God for forgiveness and he will forgive you!


	8. Chapter 8: RG Space Parinoids

I would like to thank Greymon Leader, galaxyzero, and narukyuubimode for favoriting my story; and also XxKanseyXx13, galaxyzero, Beechan88, and narukyuubimode for following.

I got the inspiration for parts of this chapter from KHLegacy's story KH Furthest Reach, Chapter 21: Karaoke in Dreamland.

I own nothing!

* * *

**Chapter 8: Radiant Garden / Space Paranoids**

* * *

The gang shot through Interspace as fast as possible toward RadiantGarden. All except for Donald and Goofy, who didn't have any, were in their armor and on their gliders. Donald sat on Sora's and Goofy on Lea's, and tried to stay conscious as the space closed in on them. The others tried to help them by casting Curaga on them every time they almost slipped off but they really needed to hurry.

In almost a sonic boom, they blasted into RadiantGarden airspace and then they dismounted almost just as fast. The two from DisneyCastle were weak but alright, but their crazy entrance had drawn the attention of many of the world.

"Are you guys alright?" Yuffie asked, concerned.

Lea snorted, "And why wouldn't we be Yoof?"

"That was quite an entrance," Merlin stated, "did you mean for it to be like that?"

"It is kind of complicated Merlin," Sora told him, "Our ship was decimated so we had to use our gliders. However, Donald and Goofy don't have armor to protect them so we had to get here fast for their sakes."

Leon came up and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You did what you needed to and everything is fine. That is all we need to know."

"Thanks Leon," Sora answered, "Oh, since you're all here, these are my best friends Riku and Kairi, and this is Ventus." Everyone welcomed the three and then headed off their own ways.

"We probably need to let the guys up at the castle know we're here," Lea said. The pyro went ahead as the others followed slowly, taking in all the sights of this beautiful world.

As they approached the castle, they saw Lea talking to two men who were guarding the gates. The men saw them and they stiffened, so did Riku and Sora. Both men were in dark blue uniforms with white accents, their large gloves were white with a blue heart on them, and on their chests was a red heart symbol.

One of the men had large sideburns that wrapped around his cheeks, dreadlocks that were pulled back into a ponytail, and cold purple eyes. The other man had short, scraggly orange hair and deep blue eyes.

"Sora, Riku, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Ven," Lea called to them, "come meet Dilan and Aeleus." They shook hands with the former Nobodies, who were just as uneasy about this as they were, or even more so than the boys. For these boys had destroyed their Nobodies and meeting the people who somewhat killed you was not on their top things to do list.

"Hello, you probably would like to speak to Even and Ienzo about the developments with Xehanort; they are down in Ansem's laboratory."

Lea looked from the uneasy Keybladers to the uneasy castle guards, clapped his hands, and said, "Ok, well Sora knows his way down to the lab… soooo I'll be going now."

"And where do you think you're going?" Donald asked suspiciously.

"Um," the red head groaned annoyed, "how about that it's, none of your business." He walked off leaving, even his exorganization comrades, staring after him in wonder.

Kairi put her arm around Sora and sweetly told them, "Even crazy guys like Lea have their own agenda, so why don't we just leave it at that." She led them off with a smile, but she turned back to the two guards and smiled, "Goodbye guys!" They stared after the kids with a stunned glance.

Lea ran through town as fast as his legs would take him, he blew past Leon and sprinted towards the baily, the young Leonheart secretly followed him. Leon peaked around the side of the bailey and saw Lea sitting alongside a mysterious girl.

"Oh ho ho, so he has a girlfriend," the brunette smirked, "He'll never hear the end of this."

The girl was tall, pale, and skinny with long blackish brown hair that covered her eyes, which were a milky white because she was blind. She wore a short black dress over a red long sleeve shirt, fingerless gloves, black knee- socks, and red boots. She turned to Lea and said in a quiet voice, "Lea, are you going to have to leave again?"

"Sera, I need to help them. If I don't, nothing will matter because Xehanort will destroy everything we know. And, I might have found a way to get back my greatest friend," Lea told her.

Her face turned his way, "You mean Roxas?"

"Yea," he said happily.

She giggled happily and Lea began to move the hair from over her eyes but she caught his hand, "No Lea, you know what you'll find there but I still don't want you to see."

"Alright, I probably need to get back to the others before they get suspicious…"

Then a voice behind them said, "Or before I get back there and tell them what you've been up to, Lea." The pyro scowled at Leon.

"Oh Lea," Sera exclaimed, "Why don't you introduce me, please. We've been keeping our dating a secret but they would've found out sooner or later."

Lea scratched his head and sheepishly replied, "I guess, but I'm telling you that this won't end well. At least for me it won't." She laughed, and it sounded like sweet bells chiming, making Lea blush. He put a hand on her arm and helped her to her feet saying, "I'll lead you so you won't have to feel around." She smiled and allowed him to escort her towards the castle.

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Sora and the others entered the laboratory and saw Even and Ienzo at work. Both of them were wearing the same outfit, a black shirt and black pants under a long lab coat, a purple tie, and the boots from their Organization outfits. The younger former Nobody looked up first and jumped at the sight of Sora and Riku. This caused Even to also look up and gasp.

"Uh hi," Riku said, "We were told that you two have some information for us on Xehanort's recent activities."

Ienzo shook the vapors from his head and replied a bit uncertainly, "Yes of course, right this way." The gang followed him back to Ansem's computer where Sora and Riku nearly had heart attacks. There standing before them were Demyx, Luxord, Marluxia, and Larxene; or at least their somebodies were there.

Demyx was wearing a long sleeve white shirt under a blue sleeveless overcoat, blue jeans, and white and blue tennis shoes.

Luxord had on a lavender button down shirt, under a black vest, on his head was a black fedora, his pants were black slacks, and his shoes were shiny black dress shoes.

Marluxia was dressed in a green tee- shirt, brown pants, a brown sport coat, and green tennis shoes.

Lastly, Larxene was wearing a yellow tank-top, a black scarf was around her neck, her short shorts were also black, and her knee- high boots were yellow. And all before them had the same reaction as Even and Ienzo to their entrance.

"Oh man, the hero's here," Demyx stuttered, "and he brought friends."

Ienzo swerved around and faced the Keyblade wielders, "Well at least you and Riku have met most of us, somewhat. You met our Nobodies and you know our Nobody's names, but you do not know us really. As Lea has probably told you I am Ienzo, the two guards outside are Dilan and Aeleus, and the other person in there is Even. These four are Myde, Rould, Railaum, and the lady is Arleen.

Kairi was confused, "Lea said that only Dilan, Aeleus, Ienzo, Even, and himself came back? How did the rest of you get here?

Railaum answered, "The rest of us ended up in TraverseTown, so Ienzo and Even went and brought us here."

"Well, you guys know me, Donald, Goofy, and Riku but this is Kairi and Ventus," Sora said with a wide grin. The boy's cheeriness threw the group of them off at first, but soon they brushed it off.

"VENTUS," the group turned and King Mickey bowled Ven over.

Ven embraced the king and cried out happily, "Mickey, oh it's been so long! I've missed you my friend!"

"You've been asleep for thirteen years Ven, how did you wake up," Mickey asked excitedly, "your heart was missing and we never found it."

Ven smiled at his old friend, "My heart was resting… inside Sora's. He went to Castle Oblivion and with the help of a friend he opened the Chamber of Waking and gave me my heart back."

"So you were the secret to the Chamber of Waking," Railaum said quietly.

Lea came into the room and asked, "So did you get what you were looking for guys?"

"No, not yet Lea," Ienzo sighed, "and actually since you were here last there have been a lot of problems with the computer. One, we can't seem to contact Tron; two, whenever we try to we keep getting logged off by some guy named CLU."

"CLU," Riku and Sora were shocked to hear that name; "he's in the system?"

Even walked in, "Yes, but how do you two know him?"

"Long story, but I will tell you he is REALLY bad news, and that means most likely Tron is in trouble," Sora said with a frown.

From behind Lea came a small voice, "But is there anything you can do?" They all turned and saw Sera leaning on the wall.

Myde looked her way and inquired, "Ok, who are you and what are you doing here?"

Lea went over and lightly grabbed her arm, "Its ok Sera." He led her into the room, "Guys I would like to introduce you to Sera… my, girlfriend." Everyone's mouths dropped. "And I brought her here, Myde! But we can discus my love life later; we need to focus on the computer problem!"

"We could just go inside and have a look," Goofy suggested. Sora and Donald completely agreed.

"Hold up one minute," Arleen exclaimed, "how are you'll going to get in?"

Sora went over to Ansem's computer, "With this. So who's going?"

"Well I, Kairi, Lea, Donald, Goofy, and Ven will want to go," Riku shrugged.

Lea mischievously glanced over at the group of exnobodies, mostly just one of them, "Hey, I know someone else who can come."

"Who," Donald squawked?

Lea's finger drifted to Myde who squeaked, "No way man! You know I don't do fighting!"

"I know that, and that's why you're coming," Lea said as he grabbed him by the collar, "you owe me and Sora!"

Myde was confused, "How do I owe Sora… or you?"

"Well you owe me and Roxas, and since he isn't here you owe Sora. It is for all those missions we went on with you and we did all the work while you sat on your butt and played on your sitar or took a nap!"

"Oh," Myde moaned, "Yea, my bad… but that was in the Organization…. Um is anyone going to help me out of this?" Everyone shook their heads and Myde tried to run but Riku grabbed him by the back of his shirt. Myde gave up fighting, "There is no way I'm getting out of this one and I know it!"

Mickey laughed and told Sora, "I'll stay and help out on this end."

Sora nodded with a smirk, "Thank you your Majesty, now if everyone who's going will please make their way over in front of the computer and we will be off!" Riku dragged Myde over while the others came over as well. Sora punched in a few commands on the keyboard and the circular portal behind them lit up brightly. Then nine beams of light shot out and hit each of them. The others in the room stared in awe as the group began to pixilate before them.

Sora felt a familiar sensation of materialization as the glowing world of Space Paranoids came into focus around him. He looked down at himself and smiled; he was in a black catsuit with royal blue wires of light going through it and on his head was a sort of helmet with a clear visor.

Riku was beside him in the exact same outfit but his wire configuration was different and it was colored a deep teal. Myde was in a white catsuit covered by a black overcoat with light blue wires. Kairi wore a black catsuit with a skirt and her wire configuration was colored hot pink. On her face was a pair of pink shades.

Donald and Goofy were in the same thing as Sora with the same colors as him. Lea's black catsuit was covered in a red configuration of lights, and Ven's was a pale green.

"This is just like The Grid," Riku said, "I wonder if Sam and Quorra are in here too?" Myde was frantically trying to find a way back, to no avail. "Myde, you're not getting out of here anytime soon so get over it!" Myde slumped over in defeat.

Then overhead passed a large flying contraption, at the sight of it Sora and Riku dragged the others under an awning and out of sight, Sora growled, "Yea CLU is definitely behind this!" The flying machine stopped and hovered over the area. "Oh Kingdom Hearts, we're in trouble if we stay here!"

"Why is that Sora," Goofy asked?

Riku answered him, "If we get caught we will be sent to the games, which the object of the game is to survive." Myde gulped and glanced around frantically.

From the machine came four guards with long electrical staffs, one looked around and ordered, "Search the area for those stray programs we saw on the monitor. One of the strays has a disc on them so we can track them that way."

Donald looked around, "Which one of us has a disc?"

"Um," Riku said uncomfortably, "it is most likely that either me or Sora." Riku turned around and Sora pulled an identity disc off his back. "I figured it was me, I got caught once so I figured they gave me one."

Lea summoned his Keyblade and growled, "Why don't you just destroy it?"

"If we do then if we get caught Riku will be derezzed for losing his disc." Lea's eyes widened in understanding. "Now we have to go, fast." They group ran through a nearby alleyway with the guards at their heels.

"Riku," Goofy said, "they're catching up to us!"

The silverette felt at his belt and his hand clasped a small rod, he held it up and smiled, "Everyone check your belts for one of these." He held up the rod for them all to see. Each person pulled one off his or her belt and Riku said, "Follow me, and try to keep up!" He took off running at full speed with everyone following; he held out the rod and pressed a small button on its side. Then a light cycle appeared beneath him in a whir of teal colored lights. The others copied him and they were soon racing along a road.

The machine followed them down the road, keeping up with them the entire time; Donald squawked, "What are we gonna do, they're gonna catch us!"

"Quick guys," Sora exclaimed, "this way!" They turned down a side road but before them stood another guard but this one pulled his disc off his back and it split into two. Sora's eyes grew wide and he yelled at him, "TRON!" When the guy heard that he stopped for a moment but he shook it off and threw his discs at them. The group weaved them, drove around the program, and kept going as fast as possible.

"Sora, I think you might have the wrong guy, that is Rinzler, CLU's number two man," Riku said, confused by his best friend's actions.

Sora shook his head, "No, Rinzler is Tron! CLU captured him and changed his coding, turning him into Rinzler." Donald and Goofy hung their heads in sadness upon hearing this news."

The gang turned a corner and stopped as the machine flew past them, they all sighed in relief, and Myde exclaimed, "Ok, I did not sign up for this…. Can we go home now?"

"One, you didn't sign up we dragged you here; two, we are not leaving till Tron is back," Donald squawked! Myde hung his head in defeat.

Lea glanced around nervously, "If we stay here we're gonna get caught eventually."

To everyone's annoyance, Myde began to hyperventilate immensely, "No no no no no no, I will not be caught and sent to die for the entertainment of some computer programs!" Ven, who had been quiet most of the time, snapped and slapped Myde in the back of the head. "Thanks," Myde sighed, "I needed that."

"What should we do," Goofy asked, "we are too large a group; if we stay together we will be captured sooner or later." Everyone nodded in agreement. "We need to split up to evade capture."

Riku crossed his arms in frustration, "It could be dangerous splitting up like that but it does seem like our best bet for not getting caught, no matter the danger involved. We can meet at the I'O tower on the other end of the city."

"I'll go with Myde to keep him out of trouble," Kairi said.

Sora immediately objected, "But Kairi…"

"Oh, stop worrying Sora," she chided, "It'll be just fine. I can take care of myself in a fight. I have my own Keyblade and I do know how to use it!"

This time Riku objected, "We know that Kairi but still…"

"Not you too Riku?" Lea was going to add something but the girl glared at him sternly and the pyro kept silent.

"Alright then Sora and Ven can go together, Goofy and I can go too, then it could be Riku and Lea," Donald said off handedly. Sora wasn't happy about this arrangement but he agreed to go with it. The first two to depart were Donald and Goofy.

Kairi and Myde were to leave next but before they did, Sora grabbed Myde by his shirt collar and growled menacingly, "Myde… if anything happens to Kairi, we will hold you responsible and you will wish you had never been recompleted!" The exnobody gulped in fear as Sora's blue, Riku's aqua, and Lea's green, and Ven's blue eyes glared at him fiercely.

"Y…yes sirs," Myde stuttered nervously, "I understand completely."

Kairi, still waiting for him to come, exclaimed, "Hey, you coming or not?" Myde joined her, with the four boys still glowering at him. They left with the four boys soon going their ways.

Kairi and Myde sped along the roads, they threat Sora gave him still fresh in the young man's mind; they soon were spotted by the guards who chased them throughout the city. To their dismay one of the large machines landed in their way. "Oh no, we're dead!"

The red head looked around and spotted an alleyway to their left, "Over this way Myde!" They drove down it and turned another corner and there in their way stood Rinzler. Kairi pulled to a stop and cried, "TRON PLEASE!" Rinzler froze up and stared at her. She got of her light cycle, summoned her Keyblade, and walked slowly towards the program saying, "Remember this Tron, it's a Keyblade. Sora has one just like it, you remember Sora, don't you." She walked closer to him and soon was right up before him. "Remember Sora, Donald, and Goofy your friends from the User world."

Rinzler looked her in the eyes and then down at the sword in her hand, "S…o…r…a."

"Yes," Kairi exclaimed, "I'm Sora's friend, my name is Kairi!" She reached out a hand for Tron to take; to Myde's surprise, he also reached out a hand to grab hers. But when his hand was a few inches from hers he stiffened up. Before the princess of heart could react, he grabbed her by the wrist. "HEY, Tron let me go!" Despite her cries, he began to drag her away. Kairi swung Destiny's Embrace at him but he grabbed his disc in time to block it.

Myde squeaked, "Oh I am so the wrong guy for this job!" But he got out his sitar and charged Rinzler, presently bashing him with it over the head. He released Kairi's arm, and Myde pulled her out of his reach. "KAIRI, LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" They took off running but some other guards and some Heartless cut them off. The two had to make a detour down another way, in which they saw a female program in a garage that opened into the alleyway. Myde and the program made eye contact as they dashed past. As they rounded another corner, more guards, along with Rinzler, stopped them.

Myde glanced around frantically, and then he got an idea, "Oh I am so the wrong guy for this. Sora forgive me, and Kairi forgive me."

"For what Myde," Kairi asked, hoping he had an idea for escape. He cringed as he used a technique he got from Axel, by karate- chopping Kairi in the back of the neck, knocking her unconscious. He grabbed her limp body in his arms and dashed back to where he saw the girl program in her garage.

She was surprised to see him run in with Kairi, "What do you want!"

"I'm sorry miss, but I need your help," Myde exclaimed, "CLU's men are after us and if I don't get her to the I'O tower ASAP her boyfriend and other friends are gonna kill me!"

She dropped her tools, "You're against CLU, why didn't you say so? I'll help you out. What do you need me to do?"

"Get her to the I'O tower please," Myde told her as he passed the princess of heart's unconscious body to the program. The girl nodded in agreement and Myde ran back out. The program set Kairi on her light cycle, got on herself, and drove out into the alleyway. As she drove around she got a quick glance at the boy who had handed her Kairi; he was surrounded by guards and Heartless led by Rinzler.

They were soon out of sight and the program thought to herself, "I hope you make it program."

* * *

(With Sora)

The boys all sat by the I'O tower waiting for Myde and Kairi, Sora slammed his fist on the tower wall, "I knew it was a bad idea sending her with Myde!" Lea was about to agree when a female program drove up with Kairi on her light cycle. "KAIRI!" She was unconscious when Sora took her into his arms.

"Who are you, how did you get Kairi, and where is our other friend," Lea questioned the program.

"My name is Nightshade, I'm an early developmental security program," she answered, "Your friend gave Kairi to me and told me to bring her here. But last I saw him he was surrounded by Rinzler, a platoon of guards, and some of those monsters that have been running around." Lea looked uneasy after hearing this, so Nightshade quietly said, "I'm sorry about your friend, when he handed Kairi to me I had no idea he was going to go and try to distract them on his own."

Nightshade looked like she was a teenager; she was tall with a runner's build. Her skin was pale and she had neon green eyes. Her black hair was short and spiked at the bottom. She was wearing a black catsuit with an indigo colored wire configuration. On her face were shades with glowing indigo wires around them.

Sora sat down on a block still holding his girlfriend, Ven looked at her sadly, while Riku checked her pulse, "Don't worry Sora, she's only unconscious."

"Nightshade, where did you last see Myde?"

"Well," the security program answered, "It was over near the docks for the solar-sailers. By now he is in custody, and probably, knowing CLU, has been taken to the games."

Sora was even more worried now, "If he doesn't kill him first for being a use…" He caught himself but Nightshade gave him a curious look.

"Huh," she exclaimed! She gave them all hard looks and asked curiously, "What are your names?"

"My name's Lea, this is Riku, Ven, Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy, got it memorized?"

Nightshade gasped in delight, "You're Users! And not just Users, but you three are Sora, Donald, and Goofy!" Her eyes got a dreamy sort of look as she stared off into the sky, "Tron used to always talk about you three, he said you were the greatest Users and the greatest friends. He would tell me that I would meet you someday because you promised him you would come back."

"Wait, how do you know Tron?" Donald asked.

"I'm a security program like Tron," she said, "the Users in RadiantGarden made me as a backup for him. So, I pretty much, as you Users would say, was his apprentice. I was always with him until…" Her voice trailed off and, even though she was a program, tears began to form in her eyes. Goofy put a hand on her should as she sniffled, "It's my fault… it's my fault that CLU captured him! I was the one who made CLU furious, he sent them after me, but Tron tried to protect me, and… and… he was captured! And now he's gone forever!" She broke down in tears and fell to her knees.

Kairi opened her eyes and looked at Sora, who was staring at Nightshade. Kairi saw the girl sobbing profusely. Then Sora looked over at the program and sighed, "He's alive." Nightshade looked up at him as he continued, "Tron is still alive, Night, CLU altered his coding after he captured him. Now you know him as Rinzler."

Nightshade gasped, "No it can't be!"

"Um, I really don't know what's happening but I can tell you that Tron is still there," Kairi said glancing around, "He knew Sora's name and recognized the Keyblade!"

Ven scratched his chin thoughtfully, "Well when we get Myde we can try to reach Tron and get him back. Speaking of which, how exactly are we going to rescue him?"

"Hmm," Lea smirked, "with luck he might just start strumming that sitar and singing so much they get annoyed with him and let him go." Donald and Goofy chuckled at this while Ven, Sora, and Kairi face palmed.

Riku shook his head with a smirk, "Very funny Lea, but we need to get serious. Night what's the best way to get to the games without being seen?"

"Well I've worked with Tron long enough that I know all the secret passageways but so does CLU. So some other programs and I made some more, and there's one that leads to the cells beneath the games and to the game grid itself," she told them. "I wish it was easy to get too though, the only way is through my garage. But since Myde was captured in that area it is probably full of guards searching for you guys."

Sora helped Kairi up and told her, "It's a risk we'll have to take. Myde didn't have to come with us but we brought him so we have to bring him back. And, I'll say that he doesn't owe me or Roxas anymore. He's done more than we expected by protecting Kairi the way he did."

They all agreed and set off on their light cycles for the town. When they got close to Nightshade's garage, a lot of Strafer, Magnum Loader, and Devastator Heartless appeared. Riku leapt off his light cycle and took the first swing, destroying three Strafers. Nightshade pulled out her disc and joined in the fray.

The group battled their way to their destination within five minutes, while the Keyblade wielders held off the Heartless; Nightshade ran into her garage and opened the passageway. Once it was open she yelled, "Hey, last train to the Grid leaving now! All Users load up!" The gang followed her in and the corridor closed up behind them.

* * *

(In RadiantGarden computer room)

Sera paced nervously around the room, Arleen wondered how the blind girl made her way around without bumping into the walls or into the people who walked into her pathway; finally the sightless girl exclaimed, "I can't help but feel like they are in trouble!"

"Miss Sera," Even told her calmly, "if they were in some kind of trouble they most likely would have contacted us by now."

Then the computer screen turned on and the face of a man appeared; he had pale skin, brown slicked-back hair, the man was wearing a black cat suit covered in yellow/orange wire configuration. He smirked and said in a cruel tone, "Hello Users, my name is CLU. For too long we programs have worked under you but now we shall get revenge." He stepped out off to the side and behind him were two guards holding Myde. "Now Users," CLU continued, "you shall watch as your comrade dies in the games. And the others here will soon be in my custody and will suffer the same fate. This is the fate off all Users who dare to enter this world!"

All the RadiantGarden residents looked in worry at the screen, as CLU's face faded from view. "What happened," the blind girl asked, "who did he capture?"

Arleen sighed, "Myde."

"That is it," Sera exclaimed, "your majesty I need you to send me in after them!" King Mickey was against it but he could tell by her voice how determined she was to go through with this. He started up the computer and sent Sera into the system.

(With Sora and co.)

The gang moved silently along the tunnel behind the young security program for the longest time before she spoke, "Keep your voices down because we are right below the cells." She looked back at them, "Do any of you know if Myde knows Morse code?"

"I think he does," Lea said thoughtfully, "but I can't be sure, I mean this is Myde we are dealing with, nothing is certain."

* * *

(With Myde)

Myde slumped over in the cell, wallowing in self-pity and wondering how his death would come when he heard a small tapping noise. His head shot up and he listened intently.

"What in Hollow Bastion?" Myde thought to himself, "is that Morse Code?" He listened and pieced together the encoded message. "_Myde, this is Lea, we are coming to save you_." Myde smiled and decided to send them a message back that said, "_Hurry it up would ya_!"

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Lea held his ear up to the ceiling and smiled when he got the return message, "He heard me and he wants us to hurry up."

Sora shook his head and smiled, "Let's get to it then!" Nightshade led them forward a ways and she lifted a panel up over their heads. They all clambered up through the opening and from their hiding spot behind a jutting out wall they could see the Melodious Nocturne sitting in a cell, Riku was about to signal him but two guards came and opened the cell.

"Don't tell me, game time," Myde squeaked in fright. The guards grabbed his arms and hauled him out.

Kairi ducked down into the tunnel and whispered hurriedly, "Hurry! Nightshade please, show us the way to the grid!" The program came to her side and led them faster than ever down a network of passageways and finally upward to a dead end.

"Donald, Goofy push this wall to the right." They did as she bid them and the wall moved to the side opening to a hallway. They poured out of the small passage. From the huge hallway they could see out onto the grid. There in the middle stood CLU, and beside him Rinzler holding onto Myde's arm.

CLU cried out in a loud voice, "Fellow programs, too long have we been used, deleted, and abused by the Users but now we will have vengeance! Before you stands a User who has entered our world, and we have other Users on the outside watching this as well. Before your eyes we will have a special games where the object is to derezz this User!" The crowd cheered loudly, making Myde cringe in terror.

"Did you hear that?" Donald asked, "Leon and the others must be watching."

"Riku what's the plan?"

The master looked thoughtfully out as CLU took a floating platform up to a private box, "Ok, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Nightshade you four go after Rinzler and see if you can reach him. Kairi, Ven, and I will defend Myde from the guards, Heartless, and game contestants. Lea gets the job of going up to CLU's private seat and handling him if he wants, if not I can tag along."

"I got this Riku; one guy will be a sinch!" Lea took off down the corridor in the opposite direction of the grid. He made his way up a fight of stairs and through the crowd of programs all coming to watch Myde's demise. As he grew closer to CLU's box he noticed that there were no guards. He glanced around and saw them all piled up, knocked out, in a corner. "Ok something is up," He thought, but kept going.

He got to the door, summoned his Keyblade, and burst in. CLU turned sharply in surprise, and saw the red headed User glaring him down.

"Ah," he said after calming himself, "there you are. I knew he had companions; I just needed to find them. And you made it too easy!" The program reached back and pulled off his disc. But just before he hurled it at Lea a burst of fire came from behind the Keyblade wielder and made him drop the disc.

Lea turned his head and smiled, "Hiya sweetheart!" The person who came up beside him was none other than Sera; she was in a long black dress with a red wire configuration going down it in the shape of a tongue of flame. Fire surrounded her left hand.

"You miss me Lea?" she asked with a smile. Suddenly Heartless encircled the pyros. "I've got them Lea; you tell the crowd what's going on."

Lea rushed forward and slammed the flat of his sword into CLU, knocking him down.

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Goofy scratched his head and asked, "Hey, how are we gonna know if Lea made it or not?"

This puzzled everyone, and then suddenly a familiar voice came over the intercom, "Hello ladies and gentlemen, programs of all ages, I regret to inform you that today's games have been cancelled due to an overthrowing of a certain CLU. Please make your way to the exits and have a good day, thank you."

"I guess like that," Ven smirked as they ran out onto the grid.

Rinzler released Myde and pushed him to the ground, as he ran at the Keybladers. Nightshade screamed, "TRON! Rinzler stopped as she, Sora, Donald, and Goofy ran up to him. He looked down at them without speaking. Nightshade exclaimed as tears welled up in her eyes, "Oh Tron is it really you?"

Rinzler slowly said, "Nightshade, Sora, Donald, Goofy… you're here." Then behind the four, a Strafer Heartless appeared and leapt at them. Rinzler shoved them out of the way and took the blow.

"Tron," Goofy exclaimed! Rinzler's helmet flew off and landed by Nightshade's feet. The four leapt up and stood in front of Tron as a group of guards stood before them.

One of them said, "Rinzler get up, destroy the Users and the traitor!"

Then two discs flew at them and hit the guards in the face; Sora and the others looked back and there was Tron standing behind them. Without his helmet, his grey eyes shone, and his brown hair whipped to the side. His eyebrows narrowed as her growled, "I fight for the Users!" His configuration that had been orange turned a bright blue.

While this was happening Kairi, Ven and Riku had run to Myde's side; the Melodious Nocturne looked confused, "What are you guys doing here?"

"You saved me," Kairi told him, "now it's time I returned the favor!" Ven helped him to his feet and Myde whipped out his sitar.

As guards and Heartless surrounded them he said, in a much braver voice than usual, "Hey bozos, meet Arpeggio!" He then banged his sitar onto the head of the nearest Magnum Loader.

* * *

(CLU's private box)

Lea had joined Sera in fighting off the Heartless but the monsters drove the pyros back against the window facing the grid. CLU saw his opportunity and launched his disc at them. It hit them both and sent them flying out the window. Lea grabbed Sera bridal style and managed to land on his feet.

"Sera, how did you get here?" Riku asked.

As Lea set her down she replied, "I came to help."

Then over the speakers came the voice of CLU, "Programs keep your seats, ignore that last message. I promised you a special games today and you shall have it! You shall watch as ten Users and a traitorous, defective program is derezzed!" This speech made the crowd go wild. "And I, CLU, the liberator of programs will be the one to destroy them!"

He climbed out of the window and onto the top of his box, where a small control box sat. Then the private box began to rumble and the window turned into a computer screen where a face appeared, with a fang-filled mouth. Two legs came out of the sides and the Heartless emblem appeared above the face. Then the Seethe Processor Heartless leapt down before the warriors.

Myde squeaked and cowered down behind Riku, "And there went the bold Myde." The Seethe Processor came closer and closer and just before Sora was about to lead the charge Tron and Nightshade jumped in front of him and flung their discs at CLU.

The evil program ducked and their discs missed; he stood up again and growled, "Rinzler, what are you doing?"

"HIS NAME IS TRON!" Nightshade cried in anger. Then Sora rushed past her and slammed his Keyblade into the giant Heartless's face. This caused it to roar in agony and swing its right leg at the young warrior. Sora was knocked backwards only for Tron to catch him.

"CLU took away so much from me when he turned me into Rinzler," Tron seethed, "and now that I'm back I won't let him take my friends or anything else from anyone ever again!"

Riku joined them and pulled out his summon gem, "GARRET!" Then a man of about twenty appeared; he had auburn hair that went down to his shoulders and cloudy grey eyes. He wore a tan shirt under a green tunic, and brown pants; in his hand was a large staff and on his shoulder was a falcon with silver wings. Garret got beside Riku and the falcon, Aden, flew around the Heartless.

The Seethe Processor swung a leg at them but Aden flew in front of it screeching and Garret blocked it. Then Riku noticed that Garret was blind and Aden was his eyes in battle. Riku closed his eyes and joined the man in fighting blind.

Kairi went into Warrior form and hacked desperately at the monster's face. Sera cut off her charge with a wall of fire. When the Heartless stepped over the flames she attacked the part that came over instantly.

But nothing seemed to hurt it. Ven figured out how to stop him. He called to Lea, "Hey hot head, I need a lift!" Lea dismissed his Keyblade and summoned his Chakram, which he turned on its side. Ven ran and leapt onto the weapon and Lea launched him up into the air. The blonde landed atop the monster and then he directly attacked CLU and the control box.

"Go get um Ven," yelled Goofy! Ventus managed to force CLU off the Heartless, and then he turned his attacks to the box. But CLU managed to toss his disc at him and knock Ven back. Then Tron pitched his disc at the control box and blew it up.

The Seethe Processor gave a staticy cry of pain and collapsed, sending a heart skyward as it disappeared. The gang watched it go and then turned their attention to CLU.

The program had gotten to his feet and was watching them intently. Nightshade was furious at him for what he had done to Tron; she rushed at him recklessly, disc out. CLU smirked and dodged the girl's attack but then grabbed her to him, pulled out his disc, and held it to her neck.

"NIGHT," Tron yelled, "RELEASE HER CLU!"

"All of you surrender and I will."

Sora glared at him, "You jerk!" The warriors lowered their weapons in defeat.

The evil program gave an even bigger smile at this triumph. Then suddenly a strong gust of wind wrenched Nightshade from his grasp into the air. From behind him, a flurry of knives flew into his back, making him collapse.

At that moment a foot began to bear down onto his back and an axe- sword was pressed against the back of his throat as a guff voice said, "Don't move or it'll be over for you!"

Sora and the others stood in wonder as all the former Organization members came up. "What are yall doing here?" he asked in amazement.

"We figured the card shark would have an ace up his sleeve so we came to help," Rould answered.

Arleen flipped her hair and smirked, "And you didn't think we'd let you have all the fun while we sat back and watched form the sidelines, did you?"

Dilan came up with Nightshade at his side; she ran to Tron and gave him a hug. Sora smiled, "She acts more like a User to me."

"Yes," Tron said with a smile, "I've often told her that, and she takes it as the highest praise." Then he turned to the exnobodies, "Thank you for rescuing Nightshade, it turns out that we have more User friends than we thought." He looked around at all the smiling face of his friends and then down at the young program in his arms, who looked back with a smile on her face. "Everyone thank you for your help, and thank you for still believing in me even when I was under CLU's control. You are the greatest friends anyone could ever have!"

Sora put his hands behind his head and gave his trademark smile, "Aww thanks a lot Tron, but it was nothing. You would do the same thing for any of us." Nightshade released Tron and looked back at Sora and the others. "You know Tron, you have one brave apprentice; she is just like you!"

"That is very high praise," Tron told him with a smile, "but I think she is bolder than me really. She was the one who first stood up to CLU, even after I was captured she never gave up the fight, and it was her along side Sora, Donald, and Goofy that brought me back to my senses." The female program's face flushed at this great approval from him.

Even cut in, "I'm sorry to break this up but Leon is expecting us back in the User world."

"Alright, thank you again my friends," Tron replied, "Nightshade and I will never forget this!"

Everyone said their farewells and as Sora turned to leave Tron grabbed his arm, "Sora, keep an eye on that lady friend of yours. Xehanort is coming after her."

Sora looked over at her with concern; he had almost lost her twice and he didn't plan on it happening again. "Tron, thank you for the warning, I owe you one."

"No you don't, just call it a thank you gift for helping me out here." Sora gave his trademark smile and then left.

Back in the computer room, everyone crowded around Myde making sure he was ok. Sora and the others stood back and watched. Leon came up to them and said, "Good job, we have the data you need." He handed Riku a flash drive. "Keep an eye out for Xehanort on the road; we have seen him moving about more."

Riku nodded, "Thank you Leon, but we can't really go anywhere as a group without a gummi ship."

"Cid has a new one ready for you down in the hanger," Ienzo told them. Down in the hanger was a brand new gummi ship. It was box shaped with a trapezoid shaped nose jutting out. It had a vaulted roof and the wings that were tilted with turbines beneath them. The main body was colored a pale yellow, the top and nose were a brighter yellow, the wings were black, and the turbines gray.

The mechanic patted the ship gently and told the gang, "This is Night Streakier; she is a top of the line ship, the best you'll find anywhere I guarantee it!"

"Thank you Cid," Lea smiled, "it's a nice ship." The gang said their goodbyes and climbed into Night Streakier. Then, with Sora at the controls, they shot out again into interspace.

* * *

Yes, I brought in all the other exnobodies! I know some people have other ways they put their names but these are the ways I choose. Please review!

Next time the group lands in the city of love and but strange things are going on! They have to help a mother cat and her three kittens get home with the help of an ecstatic alley cat! Next time in** Paris!**

* * *

**Greater Love**

We see throughout the Kingdom Hearts series people doing things for those they love. Whether it is a romantic love, like with Sora and Kairi, or a love between friends, like with Roxas and Lea, people are willing to go to great lengths to help those that they love.

In this chapter, you see the love between Tron and Nightshade. John 15:13 says, "_Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends_." Tron loved Night, in a fatherly way, so much so that he was willing to sacrifice himself so that CLU wouldn't get her. You see the same thing in Kingdom Hearts 1 when Sora willingly gives his life to bring back Kairi, that was the greatest show of love he could have ever given.

Jesus loves us the same! Being how Easter just passed, we should really look at how much he really loves us. He was willing to give his life on the cross for us, so that we can live with him forever in heaven. Jesus got nothing for going to the cross, don't say he got the glory because he already had that; the only thing he got… was you and me. He loves every one of us unconditionally and his death proves it!


	9. Chapter 9: Paris

Hiya! Hey if you haven't noticed I put up the second story in my training series. I'm warning you, some parts in this chapter might be confusing if you haven't read it yet! I would like to thank TWI1IGHTMAST3R for favoriting and following.

Hey if you would please review, I would really like some feedback on the chapters and any opinions you might have. I would like to thank everyone who has already reviewed and KHLegacy and The Unknowing Herald for reviewing nearly every chapter!

And again... I own nothing!

* * *

**Chapter 9: Paris**

Late one night a man drove down a county road on a motorcycle, a basket with a blanket over it sat behind him. Suddenly two dogs came out of nowhere and got in front of the motorcycle. The man swerved and the basket fell out and three cats fell out.

Thunder boomed over the lonely road as a mother cat and her three kittens huddled in the basket under the bridge.

* * *

(The next morning)

"I knew this world would be trouble!"

"Oh chill out Lea! It's not so bad," Kairi said, "the only thing bad is that we got caught in that rainstorm last night." She came out from under a small wooden bridge but not as a human! Kairi was a pink Burmese cat with red on her face, paws, and tail. Lea followed her out as a red Turkish Angora cat. Behind him came a Cornish Rex cat with silver fur covered in black and yellow short stripes; it was Riku. Sora was a brown Selkirk Rex cat. Ven came out as a golden colored Savannah cat with bronze, black, and red spots. Donald, an Aegean cat with white fur on his front and face, and blue fur on his back, paws, and tail, followed him. Last was the black with green and yellow spots American Bobtail that was Goofy.

Lea looked himself over glumly, "Did I ever mention I hate cats."

"It's a good look for you Lea-o," Sora grinned. The said Turkish Angora presently pounced upon him.

"Want to say that again!" Lea hissed at the pinned Selkirk Rex. Riku came over and pushed Lea off his best friend.

The red cat was about to argue when the sound of singing reached their ears. They saw a mangy looking orange cat come trotting up the road singing. While the others watched him, Kairi noticed a basket under a stone bridge the orange tomcat was walking on. A beautiful white Persian cat with a golden collar came out of the basket and looked him.

The tomcat saw Sora and co. but paid them no mind, but when he saw the Persian, who had come out from under the bridge, he came closer and began to sing to her…

_"Tellin' my friends of the social elite_

_Or some cute cat I happen to meet _

_That I'm _

_Abraham de Lacy_

_Giuseppe Casey_

_Thomas O'Malley _

_O'Malley the alley cat!"_

The whole time he was singing he climbed into a tree and was showering pink flowers over her.

"Why, monsieur," she laughed, "you name seems to cover all of Europe."

O'Malley continued with his song…

_"_Well of course. I'm the only cat of my kind_._

_I'm the king of the highway_

_Prince of the boulevard_

_Duke of the avant-garde_

_The world is my backyard_

_So if you're goin' my way_

_That's the road you wanna seek_

_Calcutta to Rome or home sweet home_

_In Paris_

_Magnifique, you all." _

Now the entire Keyblade gang had noticed the basket, and that now there were three kittens poking their heads out. One was a white like the older Persian with a pink bow around her neck and tying her top fur up, another was a skinny black kitten with a red ribbon tied around his, the third one was orange and little bit bigger than the other two with a blue bowtie.

The orange kitten looked at the O'Malley and grinned, "O boy! An alley cat!"

"Shh! Listen!" the white kitten shushed.

"_I only got myself _

_And this big old world_

_But I sip that cup of life _

_With my fingers curled_

_I don't worry what road to take_

_I don't have to think of that _

_Whatever I take is the road I make_

_It's the road of life, make no mistake_

_For me,_

_Yeah, Abraham de Lacy,_

_Giuseppe Casey_

_Thomas O'Malley_

_O'Malley the alley cat!_

_That's right, and I'm very proud of that._

_Yeah!"_

The Persian laughed and clapped along with the Keybladers, "Bravo! Very good, you are a great talent!"

"Oh, thank you and what might your names be?" O'Malley said with a smile. "My name's Sora and this is Kairi, Lea, Riku, Ven, Donald, and Goofy."

The Persian looked at the tomcat and answered sheepishly, "My name is Duchess."

"Duchess", O'Malley completely ignored the Keyblade gang, "Beautiful, love it, and those eyes… ooh. Why your eyes are like sapphires, sparkling so bright, they make the morning… radiant… and light."

The little white kitten sighed, "How romantic…"

"Sissy stuff," the black kitten and Lea groaned.

Duchess batted her eyes, "Oh, c'est tres jolie, monsieur."

"Very poetic," Kairi sighed, "but it's not quite Shakespeare." This made Sora scowl at the tomcat.

"Of course not. That's pure O'Malley, baby. Right off the cuff, yeah. I got a million of 'em."

Duchess waved a paw, "Oh, no more, please."

"Yes," Ven agreed in a low voice, "no more. We get enough mush with Sora and Kairi around the gummi ship." Riku, Lea, Donald, and Goofy snickered while Kairi and Sora glared Ventus down.

"Please, I really am in a great deal of trouble," the Persian told them.

The Keybladers perked up their ears at this but O'Mally stepped in front to solve the problem, "Trouble? Helping beautiful dame… uh, damsels in distress is my specialty. Now, what's the hang-up, your ladyship?"

"Well," she told the group, "It is most important that I get back to Paris, so if you'll would be so kind and show me the way."

"Well," Sora said with a smile, "we don't kn…"

The Orange tomcat cut him off, "Show you the way? Perish the thought! We shall fly to Paris on a magic carpet, side by side, with the stars as our guide, just we two."

"Ooh," the white kitten came running up to them, "that would be wonderful!"

O'Malley was surprised to see her, "Three?" Suddenly the other two kittens ran up, "Four, Five!"

"Oh yes, monsieur O'Malley, these are my children."

"Oh, how sweet…" The tomcat looked over at Sora and the others, "I suppose you guys want to make it twelve?"

Out of the blue, a group of Mad Dog Heartless popped up. The group of cats huddled together while the Keyblade gang summoned their weapons in their mouths. It didn't take them long to wipe out the enemies.

"Uh," the orange cat gave up, "You guys better come as extra protection for Duchess and the kittens."

The black kitten exclaimed, "Hey we have names too!"

"Then do tell."

"My name is Berlioz."

The orange kitten lumbered up to O'Malley, "I'm Toulouse, and I'm a tough alley cat too!"

The white kitten, instead of going to O'Malley, went to Kairi, "Bonjour, I'm Marie." Kairi bent down, picked Marie up in her mouth, and set her beside her mother.

"Now look guys," O'Malley had gone onto the road atop the bridge, "If I said magic carpet, magic carpet it's gonna be. And, it's gonna stop for passengers right… here. Using his claw, he drew an X in the dirt.

"Oh boy," Berlioz exclaimed, "We're gonna fly after all!" Ven rolled his eyes at this; a cat couldn't make them fly.

Riku was also skeptical, "Another flight into the fantasy, Thomas?"

"No, no, no, guys! Now you just hide over there and leave the rest up to J. Thomas O'Malley," he climbed into a tree that hung over the road. The group went under the bridge and waited. Soon a low roar began to approach; Sora poked his head out and saw a truck driving their way. The tomcat in the tree called down to them, "One magic carpet coming up!"

"A magic carpet," Sora whispered to Donald and Goofy, "try a truck!"

As the car drove under O'Malley's perch he dropped down onto the windshield and gave his loudest screech. "SACRE BLEU!" the driver slammed on the breaks. "SAPRISTI! STUPID CAT! BRAINLESS LUNATIC!" He began to restart the car, Duchess hopped in as Sora and the gang lifted the kittens up and jumped in after them.

"Livin' on the edge, niiicccee," Lea smirked.

"Why, Mister O'Malley," Duchess gasped, "You could have lost your life!"

"Like Lea said, 'livin' on the edge', but it was my pleasure entirely." The truck began to move, but O'Malley stayed behind. "Aloha, Auf wiersehen, Bon soir, Saranora, and all those goodbye things, fellows."

Marie went to the edge of the truck bed and waved back, "Sayonara mister…" She lost her balance and tumbled out of the back.

"MARIE!"

The tomcat dashed over, picked the kitten up in his mouth, and hopped into the truck. Duchess cuddled her daughter, "Oh Marie, are you all right?"

"Yes mama."

Riku gave the panting O'Malley a sly look, "Haven't we met before?"

"Yes, I believe we have," the tomcat returned the look.

"Oh," Duchess sighed, "and I'm so glad we did."

"Thank you Mr. O'Malley for saving my life!"

"No trouble at all, little princess, and when we get to Paris, I'll show you all the time of your lives."

Duchess shook her head, "Oh I'm so sorry, but, well, we just couldn't."

"Why not?" Kairi asked, a night on the town in Paris sounded like fun.

"You see, my mistress will be so worried about us." Kairi nodded, in understanding.

O'Malley kept pushing, "Oh come on, humans don't really worry too much about their pets."

"Oh, now that's not true," Lea snapped, to the shock of his friends.

"Lea is right," the Persian continued, "You just don't understand. She loves us very much. Poor madam… in that big mansion, all alone. In all our days, in tender ways, her love for us was shown. And so, you see, we can't leave her alone. She'd always say that we're the greatest treasure she could own. Because with us she never felt alone."

Ven got in front of O'Malley, "No matter what you say, we are taking them back to their owner."

"Alright," the cat gave in, "If you mean that much to her and her to you we'll go."

As this had been going on Goofy had been poking around the parcels in the back of the truck. His head popped up as he exclaimed, "Anyone for breakfast!"

"What breakfast?"

"Where is it?"

Goofy threw off a rug to reveal a can of milk.

Berlioz cried out, "Look, mama, look!" Using his claws, Sora took the lid off, and the kittens began to drink.

The driver, who hated cats, looked into his rearview mirror and saw the gang of cats in the back, drinking his milk. He slammed on the breaks, "SAPRISTI!" He got out, and in a last minute decision, Lea jumped on his head and hissed. The driver was beyond furious, "SACRE BLEU! THIEVES! ROBBERS! MANGY TRAMPS!" The group ran off the road as the man chunked an assortment of objects at them. With a huff he got back inside his truck and drove off.

"What a jerk," Lea hissed.

O'Malley shrugged, "Well, some humans are like that. I've learned to live with them."

Toulouse jumped onto the road, "I'll get 'em!" He began to hiss and spit in the funniest looking way.

Ven pulled him back with a paw, "Cool it little tiger."

"That guy's dynamite!" Donald quacked.

"But," Toulouse wined, "he called us tramps."

Duchess sighed, "Oh, I'll be so glad when we get back home."

"We better get going, because Paris is a long way off," Goofy said as he began to walk in the direction the truck went. They all went along until they came to a railway that crossed a bridge.

The orange kitten gasped and cried out, "Gee whiz! Look at that bridge! Come on, lets play train!" The kittens ran over to the bridge and hopped on the rail with Toulouse in front, Berlioz, and then came Marie.

Riku warned them, "You kids be careful."

"Marie's the caboose," yelled Toulouse, as Marie glared him down. "All aboard!" The three began to walk along the rail making train noises. "Choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo -choo. Whoo-whoo! Choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo. Whoo-whoo!" Then Toulouse took over, "Clickety-clickety-clickety-clickety." The entire group jumped at a real train whistle.

"Oh no!"

The kittens ran under Sora's paws, "All right, now don't panic!"

"Down under here," O'Malley yelled. The group ran under the bridge and hung on by their claws as the train passed overhead. They all sighed in relief as the train left.

"MAMA!" The group looked down and saw that Marie had fallen into the river below.

"Marie!" Cried Duchess and Kairi.

O'Malley and Sora both yelled, "Marie, here we come!" Both of them plunged down into the river after the kitten. The rest of the gang ran down the river bank after them. O'Malley caught Marie and him and Sora caught onto a log.

Duchess ran onto a branch that hung over the water, "Thomas! Sora, up here!" They tossed Marie up to Duchess and continued to float downstream.

"O'Malley, Sora! Hang on!"

"Don't worry!" yelled the Selkirk Rex, "We'll see you downstream!" They floundered down the river, trying to stay afloat.

* * *

(Downstream)

Two geese were walking down a path beside the river giggling; both were in bonnets one pink and the other blue. The one with the pink bonnet began giggling more, "What beautiful countryside, Abigail. So much like our own dear England"

Abigail nodded, "Oh, indeed, yes. Amelia, if I walk much farther I'll get flat feet."

"Abigail, we were born with flat feet." The two broke out again in giggles.

Abigail looked over at the river and started, "I say, look over there." They saw Sora and O'Malley floating on the river. The boys had left their log and had grabbed a willow branch in their teeth.

"Oh," gasped Amelia, "Oh, how unusual."

"Fancy that, two cats learning how to swim." The two tomcats paddled towards the shore, with the branch still in their mouth.

Amelia giggled even more, "And they're going about it the wrong way."

"Quite, we must correct them," the two got into the water and paddled out to them.

Amelia smiled big and cooed, "Sirs, sirs? You are most fortunate we happened along."

"Yes, we're here to help you."

Sora, with the willow branch still in his mouth, told them, "Oh no, back off ladies, we're fine."

"First," Abigail told them, "you must gain confidence by striking out on your own." She swam over to the willow branch.

"Go away!" O'Malley, "we're trying' to get to shore!"

"You'll never learn to swim properly with that willow branch in your mouths," Amelia chuckled.

"Indeed not."

As Amelia swam up to the willow branch, Sora and O'Malley had just gotten their hind legs onto a large rock in the river. The goose smiled, "Snip, snip! Here we go."

The two tomcats opened their mouths and cried, "NO DON'T DO THAT!" They both began to sink and splashed around, attempting to swim.

"You're both doing splendidly!"

Amelia agreed with her sister, "Yes, and don't worry about form, it will come later."

"They take to water like fishes," Abigail giggled, "don't they? A very enthusiastic…" While trying to swim O'Malley grabbed at their tail feathers, causing them to shriek.

"No!" Abigail exclaimed, "Now this is no time for fun and games!" Sora and O'Malley sunk beneath the surface. Amelia and Abigail laughed, but as they stared at the bubbles coming from the two cats their laughter faded. Both faces of the geese grew serious, "Gracious me, you don't suppose…"

"Oh yes," gasped Amelia, "Yes, I do! Bottoms Up!" Both dipped their heads and necks under, they popped back up and exclaimed, "DEEPER!" The geese dove all the way under the water, and came up with Sora on Amelia's back and O'Malley on Abigail's.

By now the others came running up to the bank, scanning the river for the two tomcats. "Look!" yelled Toulouse, "There they are!"

When the geese got to the bank Riku and Lea pulled the two onto the shore. Kairi rubbed her face against Sora's soaking wet one, "Oh, Sora! You're alright!" When all the others had turned their attention away from them she licked his face. He blinked a few times before returning the kiss with one from him.

"Oh Thomas! Thank goodness you're safe," Duchess sighed in relief.

Ven asked the orange tomcat, "Need any help O'Malley?"

"Help?" he gasped, "I've had all the help I can take!"

"What about you Sora?" asked Donald.

"I'm with Thomas!"

Riku bowed his head to the two geese, "Ladies, thank you for rescuing our two friends."

Amelia giggled, "Of course, young sir. But first, introductions."

"Yes," Abigail continued, "We British like to keep thinks proper."

"Now, I am Amelia Gabble, and this is my sister…"

"Miss Abigail Gabble."

"We're twin sisters."

"You might say we're related." Both geese giggled. "We're on a holiday!"

"For a walking tour of France."

"Swimming, some of the way."

"On water, of course!" They again broke into a fit of laughter.

Duchess turned to the soaking wet Thomas and sweetly said, "Thomas, this is Amelia and Abigail Gabble."

"Yea honey," he scowled, "Get those two web-footed lifeguards outta here!"

Riku cuffed him sharply, "Be nice to the two ladies who just saved your life!"

"Ok," O'Malley growled, "Hiya, chicks." Everyone glared at the tomcat, even Sora, who somewhat agreed with him.

The twin geese found this hilarious, "We're not chickens, we're geese!"

"No," Thomas said sarcastically, "I thought you were swans." The entire group face pawed, while duchess gave him a look.

Amelia giggled, "Oh, flatterer!"

"Your husband is very charming and very handsome," Abigail told Duchess.

"Well, uh, you see…" O'Malley rolled over, "I, I'm not exactly her husband."

"What about those two?" Amelia asked, pointing to Sora and Kairi who were lying sitting very close together.

Donald and Goofy laughed as the two cats separated, Kairi stuttered, "No, no, we're not together." This sent the rest of the Keybladers into a frenzy of laughter.

"What did you mean not your husband?" Amelia asked O'Malley, "You either are or you're not."

"Alright, I'm not."

Amelia leaned over to her sister, "It's scandalous."

"He's nothing but a cad," Abigail agreed.

"Absolutely, possibly a reprobate."

"A roué, his eyes are too close together."

"Shifty too."

"And look at that crooked smile."

"His chin is weak too."

"Obviously a philanderer who trifles with unsuspecting women's hearts."

Marie batted her eyes, "How romantic!"

"Not really," Muttered Goofy.

Duchess held up her paws, "Please, please, let me explain! Thomas and these others are good friends of ours. Their helping us get to…"

"Come on Duchess, Sora, guys, let's get out of here." O'Malley began to walk off, "Well girls, see ya around. We're on our way to Paris."

Abigail smiled widely, "Oh how nice! We're going to Paris ourselves."

"Why don't you join us?" Amelia suggested.

Ven smiled, "That sounds nice!"

"Oh, no," Sora and Thomas moaned. The two geese put everyone in a specific order; the twin geese in front, Sora Riku and Kairi next, then Ven Lea Toulouse and Berlioz, after them came Duchess and Marie, and last was Thomas.

They began to walk and Amelia turned her head back, "When we get to Paris you must meet Uncle Waldo."

"Waldo?" Riku cocked an eyebrow.

"Yes, he's our uncle. We are to meet him at Le Petit Café," Amelia giggled.

Duchess gasped in delight, "Le Petit Café? Oh, that's that famous restaurant."

"Ah, c'est magnifique," Lea declared in a phony French accent, making the entire gang smile. Then the strange group of cats and geese went down the road to Paris.

* * *

(In Paris)

The group walked up to Le Petit Café just in time to see a commotion going on in the restaurant kitchen. The chef and a large bird were chasing each other around. The chef yelled, "Sacre blue! Ow! Oh! He bit my finger! Get out! Go! Go! Get out! Scram!" A goose ran outside and landed on his tail. "Good riddance!"

The goose picked up a ragged green top hat and stuck it on his head; he sighed loudly, and gave a loud hiccup. Abigail smiled and exclaimed, "Why, why, it's Uncle Waldo!"

The old goose noticed the gang and cried wildly, "Ahh, Abigail! Amelia! My two favorite nooses!"

"Uncle Waldo," laughed Amelia, "I do believe you've been drinking."

Abigail noticed Waldo's missing tail feathers, "Oh dear! What happened to your lovely tail feathers?"

"Girls, it's outrageous! Why, you won't believe what they tried to do to your poor old Uncle Waldo [hiccup] look at this!" He went over to a sign on the wall and read, "Prime country goose a la provencal, stuffed with chestnuts, and basted in white wine [hiccup]."

"Basted?" O'Malley questioned.

Lea agreed, "He's been marinated in it!"

"Dreadful," Waldo whined, "Being British, I would have preferred sherry." The trio of geese busted out laughing. "SHERRY! SHERRY!"

"Oh," Amelia giggled, "oh, oh, oh Uncle Waldo, you're just too much."

Sora bent over to Kairi and Riku, "You mean he's had too much."

"Abigail, Abigail!" She leaned over to hear her sister whisper, "We best get Uncle Waldo to bed."

"Why, I say there, now, what's all the whis-whispering about, huh?" The twins tried to hush their uncle but he grew louder, "Now, now, now, now, girls, girls! Don't shush your old Uncle Waldo! Why you'll, you'll wake up the whole neighborhood!" The girls continued to shush him but he yelled out, "WHOOPEE! NEIGHBORHOOD!"

Abigail and Amelia took their uncle and began to take him away, "Come to sleep, Uncle Waldo."

"Oh, yes, I think we'd better be going."

Uncle Waldo wasn't finished, "Oh, righto, girls! Birds of a feather must [hiccup] together."

"That's stick together!" They began to walk off giggling and stumbling along.

Riku stared after them, "That was…"

"Weird," Donald finished.

O'Malley had a different view though, "You know something? I like Uncle Waldo."

"Especially when he's marinated," Duchess chuckled.

* * *

(Paris rooftop that night)

The group of cats walked in a line along the rooftops of Paris, Thomas in the lead. Marie was sitting on his back, Berlioz sat on Sora's back, and Lea carried Toulouse on his back. Duchess asked the orange tomcat, "Thomas, Madame will be so worried. Are you sure we can't get home tonight?"

"Mama, I'm tired," Marie sighed.

"Me too," Berlioz whined, "and my feet hurt."

Kairi went up to the white Persian and quietly said, "Oh Duchess, it's late."

"Baby, the kids are bushed," O'Malley kindly told her.

Toulouse was so tired, "I'll bet we walked a hundred miles."

"I'll bet it's more than a thousand," cut in Berlioz.

Duchess tried to comfort her kittens, "Now, now darlings, cheer up, Mister O'Malley knows a place where we can stay tonight."

"Hey alley cat," Lea groaned, "I'm with the little ones. How much farther is it?"

O'Malley smiled back and chuckled, "Keep your whiskers up guys; it's just beyond the next chimney pot." The gang went on and he soon pointed out an old attic. "Well, there it is! My own penthouse pad, it's not exactly the ritz, but it's peaceful and quiet." Suddenly the lights came on inside and a trumpet blared from inside, followed by more music.

"Peaceful huh?" Donald glanced at Thomas.

The orange cat looked surprised himself, and a little embarrassed, "Oh! Oh, no, sounds like Scat Cat and gang have dropped by."

"Oh, friends of yours?"

"Uh-huh, yeah," Thomas told them as the kittens and Sora went to poke their heads in the window, "They're old buddies and they're real swingers."

Duchess was confused, "Swingers? What is a swinger?"

"You know, uh, not exactly your type, Duchess. Maybe we'd better find another place, huh?" All the Keybladers thought that these 'swinger' friends of O'Malley sounded like fun to hang out with.

"Oh no, no, no, I would like to see your pad, and meet your Scat Cat."

"Well, Okay." The group followed Sora and the kittens and soon they all were peaking in the rooftop window. They saw a fat black cat on the bed blowing a trumpet, a light brown Italian cat playing a accordion, a cream colored English cat playing a guitar, a dark brown scraggly Russian cat playing a bass, and a yellow Chinese cat playing the piano. O'Malley smiled and cried out, "Hey Scat Cat! Blow some of that sweet stuff my way!"

The fat black cat blew a long not on his trumpet and laughed, "Well, looky here! Big man O'Malley is back in his alley! Swing on down here, Daddy."

Thomas swung down and slid across the piano, spinning the Chinese cat around in his chair. "Lay some skin on me, Scat Cat, yea!" The black cat high-fived him.

"Buona sera, paesano," the Italian cat smiled.

The English cat took off his sunglasses, "Welcome home, O'Malley!" Sora and the gang hopped down after Thomas. Duchess went up to Scat Cat and O'Malley introduced him, "Duchess, this is the greatest cat of 'em all."

"Oh," Duchess cooed, "I'm delighted to meet you, monsieur Scat Cat."

He kissed her paw, "Likewise, Duchess. You're too much." He raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, ho, ho," Duchess giggled, "You are charming! And your music is so… so different, but so exciting."

"It isn't Beethoven, mama," Berlioz smiled from atop the piano.

Ven was right up there with the black kitten, "But it sure bounces!"

Scat Cat chuckled, "Say! These kitten cat knows where it's at!"

"Knows where what's at?" Kairi was confused.

"Well, young lady," Scat Cat exclaimed, "Let me elucidate here." He began to sing…

"_Everybody wants to be a cat!_

_Because a cat's the only cat_

_Who knows where it's at."_

O'Malley joined in…

_"Tell me!_

_Everybody's pickin' up on that feline beat_

_'Cause everything else is obsolete."_

Scat Cat looked up at Lea on the bedpost, "Strictly high-button shoes."

O'Malley:_ "A square with a horn_

_Makes you wish you weren't born _

_Every time he plays."_

_But with a square in the act_

_You can set music back."_

Scat Cat: _"To the caveman days… otto- toe- tom- oh- day"_

O'Malley: _I've heard some corny birds who tried to sing…_

Scat Cat: _"Still the cat's the only cat_

_Who knows how to swing_

Russian cat: _"Who wants to did a long- haired gig _

_ And stuff like that."_

O'Malley and Scat Cat: _When everybody wants to be a cat_

_ A square with a horn_

_ Makes you wish you weren't born_

_ Every time he plays_

O'Malley: _"Oh, a- rinky- tinky- dinky"_

O'Malley and Scat Cat: _"With a square in the act_

_ You can set music back_

_ To the caveman days"_

Marie and Kairi joined in…

_"Oh, a rinky- dinky- tinky!"_

O'Malley: _"Yes!"_

Sora and Kairi joined up with O'Malley and Marie…

_"Everybody wants to be a cat_

_ Because a cat's the only cat_

_ Who knows where it's at_

_ When playin' jazz he always has _

_ A welcome mat"_

O'Malley, Marie, and Scat Cat: _"Cause Everybody digs a swingin' cat."_

Lea launched Toulouse into the air and he grabbed the light cord, causing multicolored lights to dance around the room. "Oh boy fellas!" The Chinese cat exclaimed.

Lea followed him up, "Let's rock the joint!"

"Ha-Ha!" laughed the Russian cat, "Groove it, cat!" The beat of the music stepped up and everyone began to dance around the room. They were all smiling and have a wonderful time.

Toulouse began to dance on the piano keys, playing a swift melody. The Chinese cat began to play on the piano with chopsticks…

_"Shanghai, Hong Kong, Egg Foo Young_

_ Fortune cookie always wrong._ Oh ho, that's a hot one!"

The music played on, and everyone's spirits lifted higher. Thomas went over to Duchess, "How 'bout you and me, Duchess?"

"Yes," she replied, "Let's swing it, Thomas." The two got up on their hind paws, put their front paws together, and began to dance.

"Wanna join 'um, Kairi?" Sora asked the pink Burmese.

She giggled, "Oh yes!" They joined the tomcat and Persian in dancing.

"Groovy," Toulouse and Goofy exclaimed.

Scat Cat pulled off his bolar hat, stuck it on Berlioz, put his trumpet before the kitten and exclaimed, "Blow it, small fry, blow!" The orange kitten blew one sharp blast, that took up all the air in his lungs.

Lea laughed at the kitten, "Boy, he blew it!"

"But he was a-close," the Italian cat agreed. The music and dancing continued for a few more minutes before it slowed down and was replaced but Duchess strumming away lightly on a harp. All the boys lay down and sighed as she quietly sang…

_"If you want to turn me on_

_ Play your horn, don't spare the tone_

_ And blow a little soul into the tune _

O'Malley: _"Let's take it to another key"_

Scat Cat: _"Modulate and wait for me_

_ I'll take a few ad-libs and pretty soon_

_ The other cats will all commence"_

O'Malley: _"Congregatin' on the fence_

_ Beneath the alley's only light"_

Duchess:_ "Where every note is out of sight." _

There was a moment of silence before Scat Cat began the jazz music again. All of Scat Cat's gang jumped up atop the piano, playing their instruments, stomping, and singing…

_"Everybody, everybody_

_ Everybody wants to be a cat!_

_ Everybody, everybody _

_ Everybody wants to be a cat!" _

The floor began to break under the piano, they fell six stories down, still singing the same verse over and over. When they got to the bottom they all filed out with broken instruments, still singing as they walked on the fence out of sight. The entire group watched Scat Cat's gang going off into the distance.

Donald put out the lights as Lea, Ven, and Kairi brought the three exhausted kittens to their mother. She put them in the bed as they hummed the song from Scat Cat. "Happy dreams, my loves." The Keyblade gang curled up in different places around the room and fell asleep, while Duchess and O'Malley went out on the rooftop to talk.

Sora tossed and turned in his sleep. He remembered something from his time alone, almost nine months ago. A vision of Riku, Lea, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, now Ven, five obscured figures, and Kairi lying on a field of battle. All were covered in lethal wounds, and death had take most, or all of them. This time he saw something he hadn't seen before, a figure in a black coat stood above Kairi with a gear themed Keyblade, about to deliver the final blow. Sora jumped into wakefulness, waking Ven who was sleeping nearby. The destiny islander got up and went to the rooftop, O'Malley and Duchess were asleep by now, and Ven followed him.

"Sora?"

The Selkirk rex jumped at the sound of his voice, "Oh Ven, it's just you."

"Sora," the Savanna asked, "What is it?"

"Ven, do you remember in Edoras, when I touched that black globe and saw that vision?"

"Yes."

"I saw the vision again in my dream, but this time you were in it there was someone, probably one of Xehanort's thirteen darknesses, was about to kill Kairi. You remember that vision was what made me share the Paopu with Kairi at the time that I did. I wanted to show her how I felt before the vision came to pass."

"I remember, and I'm sorry Sora." The two sat in silence on the Paris rooftop.

Lea was also tossing in his sleep. He heard Roxas's voice in his head saying, 'You promised us Axel'. Then a girl's voice joined his, 'You promised that you would always be there to bring us back'. Lea saw Roxas and then another figure in the behind him.

"Roxas!" Lea exclaimed, "Who is your friend?"

Roxas turned to the slim figure in the Organization coat and smiled, "You don't remember, the memories are leaking out; soon you will recall everything about her."

"What do you mean, Roxas?" The blonde boy faded from view, as did the slim figure behind him. "ROXAS WAIT!" His yelling didn't help; he awoke soon after to morning light just coming on the horizon.

* * *

(Later that morning)

The group walked down a fancy street, lined with mansions. Everyone was impressed with the neighborhood's very fancy appearance. Especially O'Malley, "Hey! Mee-oww! What a classy neighborhood! Dig these fancy wigwams!"

"Wigwams?" questioned Duchess.

Sora was also stunned by the niceness of the houses, "Are you sure we're on the right street?"

"Yes, yes!" exclaimed Duchess, "Let's hurry, we're almost home!" The kittens ran ahead to the large mansion on the end of the street.

"Hooray! We're home," yelled Berlioz.

His sister joined in the excitement, "Wait for me, wait for me! Me first, me first!" The three up to where the cat door was but since it was closed all three bonked their heads on it.

"It's locked."

Marie got an idea, "Come on, let's start meowing." The three little ones began to meow loudly.

A mouse ran up to the window and began motioning to the cats. Toulouse cried out, "Look! There's Roquefort, Hi Roquefort!"

"He's sure glad to see us!"

The others were saying their goodbyes to Duchess.

Duchess was sad to see Thomas and the others go, "I don't know what to say. I only wish that…"

Lea sighed, "Maybe a short goodbye would be easiest."

"I'll never forget you Thomas O'Malley, or you Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Kairi, Ventus, and Lea, bye."

"Goodbye Duchess."

"It was nice to meet you."

O'Malley was the saddest one of the gang, "So long, baby." Duchess left them and went to the door with her children.

A skinny butler opened the door for the four cats, "Duchess, wherever have you been?" They came inside and when the door was shut the butler, Edgar, grabbed them in a sack and slammed them in the oven as Madame came their way.

This treachery was unknown to Sora and the others as they slowly walked around the street corner. They hadn't gone very far when the mouse from the mansion window ran up to them panting, "Mister O'Malley! Sora! Hey! Stop! Duchess! Kittens! In trouble!" Butler did it!"

"DUCHESS AND KITTENS IN TROUBLE!" They all began to run back to the house. O'Malley yelled back to Roquefort, "Look, you go get Scat Cat and his gang of alley cats!"

"A-a-alley cat?" Roquefort stuttered, "But I'm a mouse!"

"Look, we're gonna need help."

"You mean you want me?"

Thomas pushed the mouse on but Donald followed, "I'll back him up in case Scat Cat tries to eat him!"

"Fine," the tomcat cried, "Tell him O'Malley sent you and you won't have a bit of trouble."

* * *

(In a backstreet alley)

"No trouble he said," Roquefort whined, "Well, that's easy for, uh, for what's- his- name to say. He's got nine lives, I only have one." He didn't notice the Italian cat behind him until it was too late.

The mouse was thrown before Scat Cat, "What's a little swinger like you doin' ion our side of town?"

"Oh please," begged the frightened mouse, "Uh, I was sent here for help by a cat."

"This is outrageous! This is crazy!" The alley cats busted out in roars of laughter.

"B-but honest! He told me just to mention his name."

The Russian cat grinned evilly, "So? Start mentioning name, rodent."

The little mouse was placed in Scat Cat's paw, much to its horror, "Oh, now, wait a minute, fellas. D-d-don't rush me. His name is… O'Toole."

One of Scat Cat's claws sprung out, "I don't dig him, strike one."

"Oh, ooh, O'Brien."

"Strike two."

"Oh, boy," Roquefort stuttered, "You believe me, don't you?"

The English cat glared at the mouse, "Keep talkin', mousy."

"How about O'…Grady?"

All of Scat Cat's claws extended, "Mousy, you just struck out." He stuck one claw under Roquefort's chin. "Any last words?"

Roquefort yelled in desperation, "Oh! Why did I listen to that O'Malley cat?!"

"O'MALLEY!"

"Hold it cats," cried Scat Cat, "This little guy's on the level!"

"You're darn tootin' I'm on the level," the mouse spat.

"Oh," the Italian cat stammered, "We didn't mean-a to, to rough a-you, squeaky!"

Just at that moment, Donald ran up, "Don't worry about him! O'Malley and the others need your help! Duchess and the kittens are in trouble!" All the cats hunched their backs and hissed in anger at this news.

"Come on cats, we gotta split!"

"Hey wait for me!" yelled Roquefort as they all took off. He just managed to grab onto the Russian cat's tail as Donald lead them toward the mansion.

* * *

(The mansion stables)

The butler dropped the sack holding the cats in a trunk and padlocked it. "Now, my little pesky pets. You're going to travel first class, in your own private compartment."

O'Malley and the others were sitting in the rafters above him waiting to strike as Ven thought, "The butler… why is it always the butler?"

Edgar continued happily, "All the way to Timbuktu, and this time, ha, you'll never come back. Oh, no, we've got to hurry! The baggage truck will be here any moment." At that moment the group in the rafters leapt down onto Edgar. He jumped back, waved his hand, and suddenly a hoard of Mad Dog Heartless appeared. "These puppies will take care of you meddling felines!" The guys summoned their weapons as O'Malley went after Edgar.

In a moment Scat Cat's group bounded in and attacked Edgar. Goofy yelled, "Sora, open the chest with your Keyblade!"

"I can't! There's no Keyhole, it's a combination lock!"

Roquefort ran over and tried to crack the code, but there was too much noise from the battle. After a few minutes of trying he yelled, "QUIET!" Everyone froze as he listened and cracked the lock. Then the battle recommenced. Lea and O'Malley jumped into the chest, "Everybody, outta here, fast!" But before they could jump out Edgar had broken away from the furious cats and closed the lid on all of them.

He growled, "You're going to Timbuktu if it's the last thing I do!" Darkness began seeping from him and surrounded the trunk. He grew larger and Edgar turned into a large dog like Heartless. His body was colored a dark grey and it was covered in white lines. The chest, with Duchess, Marie, Toulouse, Berlioz, O'Malley, and Lea hung around his neck like a ID tag on a collar. The Heartless insignia was glowing on his back. The Frenzied Beast Heartless, once Edgar, roared loudly.

"So it was him that drew the Heartless here." The group summoned their weapons to destroy the giant Heartless. Ven and Sora attacked first, both blasting it with a barrage of fire spells at it. The Frenzied Beast Heartless countered with a sweep of his front paws, Ven and Sora were thrown back into the gang of alley cats. Kairi leapt up and drove her blade into the insignia on its back, it roared loudly with pain and rolled over onto the Princess of Heart.

"KAIRI!" Scat Cat pulled her out from under the monster while Sora cast Curaga on her. Donald paralyzed it with a thundaga spell as Goofy bashed it on the head as hard as possible. All the alley cats jumped on it's head and scratched it like crazy. As the Heartless tried to bat them off Riku jumped over and cut the chest, that contained the others, from the Frenzied Beast's neck.

It fell and Lea, O'Malley, Duchess, and the kittens jumped out. When this was done the Heartless shrunk to a normal dog size. O'Malley and Lea charged it, knocking it into the chest, Sora sealed it in, and the alley cats pushed it outside the barn. Just in time to, for the mail truck drove up at that very moment

"Well Mac," on of the men said, "this must be the trunk, eh?"

Mac answered him coworker, "Yup, and she goes all the way to Timbuktu." They heaved the trunk contained Edgar into the truck and drove off.

Toulouse jumped out into the road behind the truck and began to snarl and hiss, making everybody laugh.

Kairi was at the back of the pack when she heard a low voice calling to here, "_Kairi…Kairi."_ She followed the sound of the voice outside the barn and around a bend. She heard nothing else so she was about to go back, when suddenly a blast of magic hit her. She gasped, but it didn't hurt her; she opened her eyes and squeaked in surprise, she was human again. But she had no time to think on this, for all of a sudden she was grabbed from behind and a cloth was pressed over her mouth and nose. She struggled but her captor had her in a strong grip, and by now she could tell that the cloth was covered with chloroform. Kairi tried to keep her eyes open but the chloroform was beginning to take it's toll.

With one last burst of energy she screamed, "SORA!"

"KAIRI," he turned and took off, the others not far behind him. He turned a corner and saw Xigbar/ Braig with, now unconscious, Kairi in his arms. "LET HER GO!"

He smiled evilly and as a dark corridor appeared behind him, he replied, "No way hero boy! Xehanort needs your girlfriend, so I'll be going now." Sora summoned Ultima Weapon and charged Braig. The sharpshooter laughed and gave Sora a hard kick, sending him flying back into the others. "Bye bye heroes!" He slung the Princess Keyblader over his shoulder and walked through the corridor.

"KKKAAAAIIIIRRRRIIII!" Sora turned to the others, "We've gotta go now! I'm sorry but we've have to go now."

Duchess understood, "Yes, you must go. We'll miss all of you, and thank you for saving us."

"You're welcome," Riku said, the Keybladers took off.

Marie stopped Sora and pulled off her pink ribbon, "Give this to Kairi when you find her." Sora smiled at the kitten and nodded.

* * *

(On the Gummi Ship)

Sora paced back and forth around the cockpit nervously, "How are we gonna find her? And even if we do, how will we get to her?"

Lea was thinking very hard about this dilemma, Sora could probably locate her, but getting to her was the biggest problem. Suddenly, he had an idea; the pyro grabbed Riku and pulled him into the hallway.

"What is it Lea?"

"Riku, I have and idea of how to get to Kairi!"

Riku's eyes widened, "How?"

Lea scratched his head, "I used to be able to bring up dark corridors, but Master Yen Sid sealed that ability away, so as not to attract any unwanted attention from Xehanort." Riku remembered well. "What if I could bypass the seal and open a corridor to rescue her?"

"Do you want to tell Sora?" Riku asked the red head.

"No," Lea told him, "Xehanort would expect Sora to come save her, and if we tell him he'll want to come. I don't believe Xehanort would expect someone who kidnapped Kairi in the past to rescue her."

Riku nodded, there was some truth to this, but Master Yen Sid had specifically told Lea not to even attempt at making a dark corridor. "It's risky Lea, even if you could create one it would still put everyone at risk."

"Do we have any other options?" Riku was quiet, but he had to admit that Lea was right. This was the fastest way to get the Princess back, whether they liked it or not. "Riku, you've gotta back me up here. Kairi is like a little sister to me, she's one of your greatest friends, and Sora is in love with her; we really don't have any other choice."

Riku sighed, "Fine, I'll help you out." Riku had some training in magic, so Lea was able to temporarily use his ability. "Lea, you better bring her back, or both Sora and I will kill you!"

Lea nodded, "Alright… I get the picture." He opened a corridor and grinned, "Don't wait up." Then the red head dashed through the corridor, the dark portal closed behind him with a rush of dark energy. Riku turned and headed back to the cockpit, he was going to have some serious explaining to do.

* * *

**Family**

Duchess is a great mother to her three kittens; she defends them, loves them, and cares for them. Whether you have a family or not, anyone can see how much she cares for her children. Even with Lea and Kairi, he now sees her as a sister, family. Some of us don't have a family or at least parts of our family, maybe a mother or a father. If we don't have an earthly family, anyone can be in God's family. He sees us as his children and loves unconditionally. So if you ever feel alone or that you have no one just look to God and he will be your comforter in all circumstances.

* * *

Yea… now it's going down. You see that the relationship between Lea and Kairi has grown from being just friends; now Lea sees her as a sister, and he watches over her like a big brother. Please review!

Next time… Lea goes to save Kairi and they end up on a new world, which is secretly being protected by a group of aliens in disguise. Next time in **Cyber Cite**!


	10. Chapter 10: Cyber Cite

Sorry for the delay, family matter I don't want to discus. Thanks for all the reviews last chapter… keep it up! Thank you stardust902 for following!

This chapter is one of my favorite shows, and one of my biggest fandoms. I watch eight versions of this cartoon series, besides the movies. So lets get to it and… ROLL OUT!

Oh and I own nothing!

* * *

**Chapter 10: Cyber Cite**

* * *

Kairi awoke with a severe headache; she glanced around and groaned, she was locked in the same cell that Saïx had locked her in two years ago. This time there was a Keyblade seal overhead. Outside the cell stood a young figure in a black coat, Kairi called to him, "Hey who are you?"

"A 'friend' of someone you know," he gave an evil laugh that made Kairi cringe at the sound of it.

She attempted to stand but was still too weak, "What do you want?"

"You'll see very soon Princess," He walked off into a dark corridor, leaving her alone again. She curled up on the floor of the cell to rest; she was tired and weak, not just from the chloroform but from the effects of the Keyblade seal as well.

"Why did I have to go off alone," she chided herself, "I knew it was dangerous." Suddenly a dark corridor appeared in the cell with her. "Oh no! What do they want with me now?" Then to her shock and delight, Lea walked out. "Lea!" Again, Kairi tried to get to her feet but failed.

The red head went over and hoisted the Princess of Heart to her feet, "Can't talk now Kairi, we gotta move!" With Lea holding her up they made their way into the corridor. The two hadn't gone very far when Lea stopped. "You… what do you want?" Kairi looked up and saw Sïax, or Isa, standing in their way.

"Isn't it obvious? I cannot allow you to take the Princess."

Lea summoned his Keyblade, "Sorry but I'm not giving her back, I told Riku I'd bring her back safe and that's what I'm gonna do!"

The blue haired man smirked and summoned his claymore, "I'm disappointed in you Lea. You always did things that would help our friendship, but now everything is for Sora… or is it really for, Roxas?" Lea looked at the ground and sighed. "I thought so… again I ask you what would you rather suffer the loss of, some make believe friendship, or a real one?"

Lea finally snapped, "IF THE 'REAL ONE' COSTS THE LIVES OF MY 'MAKE BELIEVE' FRIENDS THEN I CHOOSE THE MAKE BELIEVE ONE!"

"Just what I expected from a weakling," he took up a battle stance, "It will be an easy task to take the Princess back from you, especially in the state she's in." Lea looked down at Kairi, who now was clinging to his arm, just to keep herself standing. The pyro grabbed her around the waist and let her limp form drape over his arm.

"YOU WANT HER ISA… no wait, the Isa I knew wouldn't do the things you are doing; SIAX, IF YOU WANT HER, COME AND TAKE HER!" The two clashed, Lea making sure to take the full force of the attack on the side away from Kairi, Sïax was putting everything into his attacks. The man of darkness didn't care if he had to destroy his old friend or not, all he wanted was to take back Kairi.

Lea knew he couldn't fight this way for long, but with Sïax pummeling him with attacks it was impossible for him to concentrate hard enough to open another dark corridor to a specific place. Finally, he gave a great push and sent his old friend back. With little effort, he opened an exit corridor, but this corridor could lead anywhere. He had no time to put the extra effort in to specify a world, and even now, he didn't hesitate as he jumped through.

* * *

Kairi opened her eyes just as the green aura of a Cure spell dissipated around her; Lea kneeled down beside her and asked, "You ok?"

"Yea," she replied getting up on her feet, "I'm fine, thanks for rescuing me, Lea."

Lea helped her up, "Don't mention it, now we have another problem… how to contact the others from here."

"I think I could help with that, so that's not really a problem; but where are we?" They were standing in a drainage canal as the sun was just beginning to set. "I've never been here before."

"Neither have I," Lea admitted, "I didn't have time to open a corridor to a specific place, sorry." Kairi was about to answer when a loud blast came from further down the canal.

The two ran down the canal, and stopped in surprise, before them a battle between four giant robots! Two purple robots with black accents, a red slit for eyes, and wheels on the back of their arms and legs battled against two colorful robots. One robot was a slim female like bot with mainly blue coloration and pink and silver accents. The other was a bulkier yellow bot with black accents.

Nearby were two human boys. The older boy was about Sora's age with windswept black hair and brown eyes. He wore a white long sleeve shirt under a gray tee- shirt, blue jeans, and black tennis shoes with white on the ends.

The other boy was about 12 years old, his brown hair reminded Lea of Roxas's hair somewhat, his eyes were brown, and partially hidden by a pair of red glasses. He had on a yellow button down shirt with white sleeve-cuffs, over that was an orange sweater-vest, baggy blue jeans, and orange and gray high-tops.

Both the yellow and blue bots were knocked to the ground, as the other two pounded on them. The younger boy yelled, "LEAVE THEM ALONE!" Now the other bots noticed the two boys. One waved his hand towards them and around two dozen Strafer Heartless appeared, along with a new type of Heartless that closely resembled the attacking robots.

"That's our cue!" Lea and Kairi summoned their weapons and launched into the fray as the boys made their way into a drainage pipe. To the surprise of the boys and bots the two Keybladers battered the Heartless. Kairi sent blizzard spells in all directions while Lea followed it up with triple Fiagara spells.

When one of the dark robots attempted to grab Kairi she changed into her warrior form, and laid a pounding on his face. This only succeeded in making it angrier, after trying to grab at her again and again the blue robot backed her up by throwing the robot off her.

Suddenly another bot joined the battle; he was way bigger than the yellow robot, he was colored green with black accents. The darker bots turned tail and, to the utter shock of the Lea and Kairi, they transformed into two dark sports cars and drove off.

As the two boys came out the blue robot glared at the four humans and ordered, "You never saw us! We don't exist!" Then the three transformed, the blue bot into a sleek motorcycle, the yellow one into a yellow sports car with black custom racing stripes, and the green one into a large green SUV, and they drove off.

Kairi put up her blade and asked the two boys, "Are you guys alright?"

"Fine, we're fine," the older boy stuttered, "Who are you guys?"

"I'm Lea and this is Kairi, got it memorized?"

"Memorized," laughed the younger boy, "My name's Rafael Esquivel but you can call me Raf."

"And I'm Jack, Jack Darby. You two aren't from around here, am I right?"

Lea nodded, "Yes, we're just passing through."

Raf asked, "Do you guys have somewhere to stay tonight?"

The two Keyblade wielders shook their heads; Jack shrugged, "Well since you two helped save our lives, you could come stay at my house for the night. I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind, she is always ready to help others in any way possible."

"That's real nice of you Jack!" Kairi said with a smile, "Lead the way, but could we keep the whole saving your lives thing a secret?"

"Sure, I was going to say you two backed me up when I was about to be mugged or something like that," Jack smirked. They all laughed and went their separate ways.

* * *

(Later at the Darby household)

Jack walked into his house with Kairi and Lea close behind; Jack's mother, June Darby, was working in the kitchen. She was a tall woman with black hair that was pulled back into a pony tail and her eyes were a chocolaty brown. She was dressed in a green nurses outfit, under a tan jacket, and her tennis shoes were white.

She was a little surprised to see the two with her son, "Jack, who are these two?"

"They helped me out of a tough spot this afternoon, and they had nowhere to stay so I thought it would be nice if we let them stay the night here," Jack told his mother, "This is Kairi and Lea."

June smiled at them, "Alright, Kairi you can have Jack's room and both you boys can sleep here in the living room. Now how about you all get ready for dinner." The boys headed off while Kairi assisted June in getting dinner ready.

"Miss Darby, thank you for your hospitality."

"You're welcome Kairi; I would like to thank you for helping my son today."

Kairi smiled in reply.

* * *

(Later that night)

Lea lay on the couch tossing and turning, his dreams sending him into a frenzy of agony. He again saw Roxas and the mysterious figure, but this time her hood was down and Lea could see that she resembled Kairi a lot; the only difference was that she had short cut raven hair.

The girl smiled at him, "Axel, do you remember me now?"

"Your face, I know it somewhat," Lea gasped, "But I'm sorry, your name escapes me." They both faded from view and a lost memory came back to him.

He remembered Roxas, the girl and him sitting on the clock tower eating ice cream. Roxas looked over at her and exclaimed, "You won't believe what happened today!"

"This guy nearly sent us both tumbling off a cliff," Axel chuckled while pointing to Roxas with his ice cream stick.

Roxas smirked, "But it wasn't as bad as the time when Xi… sent all of us tumbling down that hill right into a Heartless nest!" He began to push on the girl playfully.

"Yea that tops all stupid stunts of the Organization!" Axel agreed.

The girl turned away from her obnoxious friends, "At least I don't need a babysitter every mission." Roxas, with a huge grin, flicked her on the back of the head, making Axel burst out laughing.

"It's not me, just you two!"

"That's not right Axel!"

"You tell um Roxas!"

The memory began to fade away and Lea only saw Roxas standing there, "The three of us were best friends; the memories will be returning to you soon, Axel." Then he too began to vanish.

"Wait Roxas!" Lea yelled out, "Please tell me her name!"

"Her name is Xi…" Then light filled the pyro's dream; he opened his eyes and blinked. The smell of bacon and eggs reached his nose and he sighed.

This drew the attention of Kairi, who was in the kitchen nearby, "Hey Lea, you're finally awake!"

"Yea, I'm up."

June Darby walked up with a smile, "I hope you two don't mind but Jack has school and I have work today so we won't be around much."

"That's alright Miss Darby," Lea yawned, "We have to work on reaching some friends of ours today anyway. Thank you so much for allowing us to stay, we really appreciate it."

"No problem at all Lea, you two are welcome at my house anytime!" She grabbed her nurses bag and headed out the door, Jack went out a few minutes later with his school bag. Kairi and Lea left the Darby household at around eleven that morning, making sure to leave a note thanking them for letting them stay, and Kairi even left some cookies for them.

As the two walked through the small town of Jasper, where the Darby's lived, they talked. "Kairi, do you have anyway to contact your Nobody?"

The Princess was confused, "Why?" Lea shrugged. "Well, Lea, I can talk to her. It works better when I'm asleep. We have, what I call, 'Midnight Conversations'; she and I talk in my dreams. Now again, why did you want to know?"

"Could you ask her something for me?" Lea looked over at the girl, "Ask her about a girl in the Organization, not Larxene, but a girl that looked like you but with black hair, who apparently was mine and Roxas's best friend."

"Sure." Just then the same big green SUV, that changed into a robot, drove up beside them. "Who are you and what do you want?" asked Kairi with a glare.

The SUV stopped and opened the passenger side door. "I would like you two to come with me; my leader would like to talk with you. You saw yesterday that I helped protect those two boys, I'm one of the good guys."

"And why should we…"

"Wait Lea," Kairi cut in, "I think we can trust him." Lea gave her a look but she whispered to him firmly, "Trust me on this." Lea sighed and nodded in defeat. The two Keybladers got inside with Lea on the driver's side. Kairi smiled as the vehicle began to drive off, "So who are you exactly?"

"Uh me? My name's Bulkhead, what about you guys?"

"I'm Kairi and this is Lea. It's nice to meet you Bulkhead." The rest of the time they rode in silence. About ten minutes out of Jasper, they were driving right for a plateau! When they got close, a door opened in the side and they went inside. The roadway spiraled on a gentle incline until it opened up into a large room.

Bulkhead stopped and the two humans got out; standing around looking at them were four other robots. Two of them were the ones from the day before, one was a red and white robot that looked like it could turn into an ambulance, and the last was a tall blue and red robot that looked like it transformed into a eighteen wheeler.

Bulkhead transformed behind them and began the introductions. "Guys this is Lea and Kairi; kids these two…" He pointed to the yellow and blue bots, "Are Bumblebee and Arcee, that's Ratchet he's our medic, and this is our leader Optimus Prime."

The two Keybladers were in awe as Optimus walked closer, "As Bulkhead has just told you, I am Optimus Prime. We are autonomous robotic organisms from the planet Cybertron, also known as Autobots."

Lea looked up at him with a slight smirk, "I knew it. I knew you couldn't be from this world at all, but why are you here?"

"To protect this world from the Decepticons," the blue and red titan replied.

"I'm guessing those were the robots we fought yesterday, but, to go with Lea's question, why are they here?"

"A fair question Kairi," Optimus replied, "Partly, because our world is uninhabitable, ravaged by centuries of civil war."

"War?"

"It was over control of our world's supply of Energon, the lifeblood of all Autobots and Decepticons alike. The combat was fierce and endured for centuries. In the beginning I fought alongside one whom I considered a brother; but in war, ideals can be corrupted. And it was thus that Megatron lost his way," Optimus told the two without wavering in his speech.

Lea looked downward sadly, "I know the feeling Optimus… I lost a friend of mine the same way not too long ago." His thoughts drifted back to Isa, before the Organization.

This surprised Ratchet, "How could you know, you're humans?"

"Well excuse us for being humans," Lea growled.

This caused Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee to laugh. Ratchet continued, "We were told that you both assisted our bots in battle, if it is true, how is it possible?"

"It's a long story," Kairi scratched the back of her head.

"You two both had some kind of sword that was able to harm the Decepticons and destroy those monsters," Arcee explained.

Lea mumbled, "Great, can't keep the world order anywhere." He held out his hand and summoned his Keyblade.

Ratchet looked stunned, "By the Allspark!"

"What!" exclaimed Bulkhead, "what is it?"

Optimus answered his question, "A Keyblade." Bumblebee beeped and chirped a few times before their leader answered, "A Keyblade is a weapon of great power, that is wielded only by the chosen few. No lock can withstand it and it possesses a strength that could match our own."

"Why would a weapon of that power be in the hands of humans?"

Now Kairi was ticked off at the medic, "What do you have against humans?" The medic didn't answer. The Princess of Heart turned back to Prime, "What about the other two boys, are you going to bring them here too? I really don't think that you brought us here just to ask us about our involvement in the fight yesterday; you brought us here to make sure we were protected from your enemies and that probably includes those two guys as well."

"How would you guess that?" Ratchet asked them.

"Experience."

Lea shrugged, "We're kind of in a war of our own at the moment, so we know that precautions have to be taken for the safety of others."

Bumblebee chirped out something, and Kairi answered, "We've been through much pain of our own." She put a hand to her heart with a sigh. "Actually we are trying to get back with some friends of ours, we were separated and, though I may be able to guide them to this world, it might take them a while to find us."

"Wait, you can understand Bumblebee?" Kairi nodded in reply.

Arcee cut in, "I'm sorry, but how are children like you in a war?"

"Excuse me!" Lea sternly exclaimed, "I am not a child! I am 25 years old THANK YOU VERY MUCH!"

"Alright!" Arcee smirked, "But still… you are both young. How exactly did you two get separated from your comrades?"

"We were celebrating a small victory over an enemy when I heard my name being called; I left my friends and went to investigate and the next thing I knew someone grabbed me from behind. They knocked me out and the next thing I knew I was in the dungeon of the castle of our enemies. I couldn't summon my Keyblade because they put a magic seal over my cell. It wasn't too long after I awoke that Lea came and got me out."

Bulkhead gave a long low whistle, "That's quite a story, but why did you come here and not return to your friends?"

"I can explain that," Lea raised his hand, "As we escaped we were stopped by an enemy of ours named Saïx, he was after Kairi, I fought him because she was too weak to fight or even stand up. Saïx was a hard fighter and I couldn't concentrate hard enough to get us to a specific place, so I sent us anywhere and we just happened to end up here."

Optimus kneeled down to the young warriors, "Are your comrades nearby, we could send them word that you are here and unharmed?"

"Give me a moment," the Princess of Heart closed her eyes and searched with her heart. A smile crossed her face, "They are close, not overhead, but close. If it would be alright Optimus, could we use your computer to contact our ship?"

"Yes."

Ratchet turned to the computer and asked, "What is the name of your ship?"

"Night Streakier."

As the medic began to search for the ship Arcee asked, "One more thing, why was this Saïx after you? I mean if it was just because you're a Keyblade wielder why didn't they go after someone else?"

"There are actually two reasons," Kairi slowly answered, "First, my friend Sora is pretty much the arch enemy of those who are after me and so to get at him…"

Bumblebee beeped, "**They came for you**."

"Exactly… the other reason is that I'm one of the seven Princesses of Heart."

Again, Ratchet stopped his work and exclaimed, "By the Allspark! She's one of the seven, the only seven with a heart of pure light."

"Um," Bulkhead was confused, "So are we supposed to bow or something?"

"No! No, no, please don't!" Kairi's face turned a bright red, "It's embarrassing enough when Lea addresses me as 'Princess' and not by my name."

Lea smirked; then Ratchet exclaimed, "I have located the ship Night Streakier; do you want me to contact them?"

"Yes," Lea said with a smile, "Please do."

Ratchet typed in a few commands and then spoke into the microphone, "This is Omega Outpost 1 calling Gummi Ship Night Streakier… come in Night Streakier."

There was silence and then a faint voice came over the speaker, "This is Night Streakier, I hear you Omega."

"Riku!"

"K…Kairi is that you?"

The Princess of Heart ran up to the catwalk to get closer to the mic, "Yes! It's me Riku!"

"Hang on Kairi."

There was quiet for a minute before Sora's voice came on, "Kairi?"

"Sora!"

"Oh Kairi, you're alright! Is Lea with you?"

Lea came up beside her, "I though you had forgotten about me."

"Never," Sora sounded hurt.

Optimus came up to the computer, "I am Optimus Prime, your friends are safe with us and we will be willing to reunite you with your friends."

"Yes Sir, Optimus," Riku came on the mic, "We should arrive at your world by tomorrow afternoon."

"We will be waiting for your arrival," Optimus declared.

"Thank you Optimus… Night Streakier out." The comm went dead and the two Keybladers smiled at one another.

Kairi gave the Prime a big smile, "Oh, thank you so much!" Optimus gave her an approving nod.

For the next hour or two Lea and Kairi explored the base while Arcee and Bumblebee went to go and get Jack and Raf. When the two came back into the main room Jack, Raf, and another girl were in there too.

The girl was a skinny Asian girl with black hair and pink highlights that was pulled into two high pigtails. She was wearing a pink tee shirt with purple on the collar and sleeves, an indigo tank top with yellow edging and a green robot on it. She had on blue jean short shorts, indigo and violet leggings, and black boots with purple laces.

She ran up to Bulkhead and exclaimed, "Hi, I'm Miko! Who are you?"

"Bulkhead," he said uncertainly.

"Oh! I bet you're a truck, a monster truck! Do you like heavy metal? How much do you weigh?" Then she saw the two Keyblade guys, "Who are you guys?"

Now Jack noticed them, "Wait, you guys knew about this?"

"No, we just found out about it a little while ago ourselves." Lea and Kairi got up on the catwalk as Optimus gave them the same run down as he gave Kairi and Lea earlier.

Suddenly an alarm went off, "What is that?"

Bumblebee beeped something that Raf translated, "Proximity sensors, someone's up top."

An image appeared on the screen of a large dark man in a gray suit getting out of a helicopter. "It's Agent Fowler," Ratchet replied unpleasantly.

"I thought we were the only humans who knew about you guys?" Jack questioned.

"Agent Fowler is our designated liaison to the outside world," answered the Prime, "As he tends to visit only when there are… issues." Kairi believed he was talking about the battle below the freeway yesterday. Optimus looked down at them, "It is best that you do not meet him at this time." Jack, Raf, and Miko went around a corner where they were out of sight from the catwalk. Lea and Kairi, using an Aero spell, lifted up into the rafters and out of sight.

The man strode in and hollered, "Seven wrecks, thirty four fender-benders, and a particular note about a speeding motorcycle of unknown make and a custom-made black and yellow muscle car!" He glared at Arcee and Bumblebee as they avoided his gaze. "So, anything you'd care to get off your tin chest, Prime?"

"What a jerk," whispered Lea to Kairi, and she nodded in agreement.

Prime leaned forward and looked into the agent's face, "We have the situation under control, Agent Fowler."

"They're back," Fowler said in a much calmer voice, "aren't they?"

"If you are referring to the Decepticons, I have my doubts that they had ever left. Your planet is much too valuable."

"Then it's time to wake up the Pentagon!"

Optimus's voice grew into a demanding tone as his optics narrowed, "Hear me, Agent Fowler; we are your best, possibly your only, defense against the Decepticon threat."

"Says you!"

Now Bulkhead joined in the conversation, "Hey fleshy! Did anyone get splattered on that freeway? Team Prime knows when to use force." He grabbed a tool off the balcony; as he crushed it he said, "And how much to use."

"Bulkhead!" yelled Ratchet, "I needed that!"

"Enough," demanded Prime, "Military involvement will only result in human catastrophe. Perhaps you can condone widespread human casualties, Agent Fowler. I, however, cannot."

Fowler boldly growled at him, "Then do us all a favor, Prime, and handle this under the radar… or I will!" With that, he went into the elevator and took off.

Lea and Kairi hopped down, "What in Kingdom Hearts is his problem?"

"He is concerned for his world, Lea, as he well should be," Prime told them as the kids also came out from their hiding spot.

Suddenly a high-pitched beep echoed through the room, as Ratchet checked the computer, which was making the noise, he growled, "Blasted Earth tech! Cliffjumper's signal just came back online." He began typing furiously on the controls.

"Who's Cliffjumper?" asked Kairi.

Lea whispered a guess, "Probably another member of the team that was thought dead." Kairi nodded her head in agreement.

"How is that possible?"

"It isn't," Ratchet answered his leader, "Another bug… the system's chocked full of them."

Arcee's optics brightened as she exclaimed, "If there's any chance Cliff's alive…"

Prime looked over at her and then at his medic, "Ratchet, prepare sickbay… we may need it." He turned to a control box near a large opening in the wall.

Miko jumped in excitement, "Hey, what can we do?"

"Remain with Ratchet." Optimus joined the other bots near the opening, "Lea, Kairi you may come with us."

The two joined the group as Miko cried, "Aw! Why do they get to go?"

"They can fight," Jack answered harshly.

The opening suddenly lit up with rings of light that were spaced out inside of it; a greenish fog-like substance curled between the rings. As the Autobots transformed, Kairi and Lea summoned their gliders and put on their armor, much to the surprise of everyone around. Then without hesitation they all drove, or flew as in Lea and Kairi's case, into the tunnel of light.

* * *

(With Team Prime)

They came out of the Groundbridge into a large mine filled with a glowing blue crystalline substance. Lea was very curious about these crystals, "What is that stuff?"

"That is the Energon Optimus told you about." Arcee whispered, "And this mine… it looks as if the Decepticons have been working at this for years." They made their way further into the mine and saw a large transport tube leading up to a large warship. The group looked around and Arcee spotted something, "I have a visual on Cliff!"

Optimus nodded to her, "You and Kairi go and retrieve him; we'll cover you, go!"

Kairi, with her armor still on, put away her glider and jumped onto Arcee's shoulder. They jumped up as the drones shot at them, but Optimus and the others took out all in their way. Around Cliffjumper were multiple guards, which the two girls took out easily, but Cliff nearly fell off the edge.

Arcee reached out and grabbed Cliff but as Kairi looked down at the Autobot she was surprised to see less than half a robot. He was red with a silver faceplate and one of two black horns on his head was missing. Suddenly his face turned upwards, his eyes were glowing purple, and a dark purple liquid dripped out from his veins as he gave an unearthly shriek. Cliff struggled until Arcee couldn't hold onto him anymore; he slipped from her grasp and fell, still shrieking, into a pile of Energon crystals.

Then a sinister laugh came from above; it was another bot. He was slim and colored different shades of silver, with small amounts of red on his body. "I'd stick around," he laughed, "But I'm a bit squeamish." He laughed even louder as he dropped a bomb down into the mine.

"Autobots transform and maximum overdrive!" The group transformed and Kairi hopped onto Arcee as they drove off with the blast from the bomb right on their tale. "Ratchet! Bridge us back! Use the arrival coordinates… NOW!" As they drove through, and the portal closed behind them the remnant of the blast blew the two Keybladers off their feet.

"Cutting it a bit close?" Ratchet calmly commented, "How 'bout Cliffjumper?" All the Autobots and the Keyblade wielders hung their heads in sadness. Even if Kairi and Lea had not known Cliffjumper, the loss of a friend to anyone was enough to break their hearts in sadness.

Miko dashed forward before Jack could stop her, "What was that explosion? Was there a fight? Can I come next time?"

Lea glared at the girl, but Jack had it under control, "Hey, hey Miko! Let's… go see what the Bots hide in their sock drawers." He dragged her away.

"Arcee, Kairi," Optimus asked, "What did you see?" Kairi looked at the ground as Lea put an arm around her.

"Not Cliff," the femme choked out, "At least, not anymore."

Kairi gasped in horror, thinking about what she had seen, "He, he was mutated, butchered."

"Like," Arcee continued, "like something from those Con experiments during the war." Suddenly her knees buckled as Bumblebee caught her, he buzzed in concern as he set her down on a large crate, "I'm fine! Just… dizzy." All the humans stared at them in realization.

"Robots who get dizzy…"

"Robots with emotion…"

"Robots, who can die…"

Ratchet leaned over Arcee and scanned her, he eventually honed in on her left hand, "Ah-ha… what is this?" He lifted up her hand to take a better look at the purple liquid.

"I don't know. Cliff was covered in it… leaking it," Arcee replied shakily.

Ratchet grabbed an oversized scalpel and scraped the liquid off onto a flat dish. "Go take a decontamination bath, now!" He put the plate with the substance on a microscope while Bumblebee led the femme off.

"Uh, Optimus," Jack stuttered, "I hate to butt in, but…" He held up his cell phone, "No bars."

The titan replied steadily, "A security precaution, the silo walls isolate all radio waves."

"Well, if I don't call my mom, like, now, I'm pretty sure the cops will be out looking for me!" he exclaimed.

Optimus leaned closer, "Have you broken a law?"

"Uh, curfew… it's after ten P.M."

"I better get home too," Raf added, "or I'll be grounded for a year!"

Optimus stood up and nodded in understanding, "Earth customs, I hadn't considered. But the issue of your safety still remains." He turned to his Autobots, "Bulkhead, accompany Miko home."

"Awesome!" she screamed, "My host parents will freak!"

"And," the Prime continued, "Maintain covert surveillance, in vehicle form."

"Curbside duty, got it," the wreaker smiled.

Optimus turned to his other men, "Bumblebee, you'll watch over Raf. Ratchet…"

"Busy," the medic cut him off without looking at his leader.

Prime looked at the femme who was just walking back into the room, "Arcee, you will accompany Jack."

"Still dizzy," she said with a fake sway.

"You're fine, says your physician."

Ratchet looked over at Lea and Kairi, "What about those two?"

"We won't be in the way at all, and we don't want to trouble Jack's mother anymore," Lea sighed, "We can camp out here for the night."

The Prime glanced down to them and nodded slowly, "There are human sized rooms from when this place was a missile silo. You may stay in there."

* * *

(That night)

Kairi lay asleep in a small bunkroom by herself. In her dreams, she was sitting in the middle of a beautiful garden full of flowers.

She looked up and saw a girl come and sit beside her. She was the same height as Kairi and had the same indigo eyes, but her hair was blonde and went down on one side. She wore a short white dress and white sandals with yellow stars on them.

"Hello Kairi."

"Hi Naminé, how are you?"

The girl answered, "I'm alright, but something is up, I can feel it."

"Yes, Lea wanted me to ask you about something," the Princess of Heart answered, "Who is the girl in the Organization that looks like us except for her black hair?"

Naminé picked a daisy and smelled it, "I cannot recall her name at this moment but I do remember that she was number XIV in the Organization. She was a clone of Sora, made from his most precious memories… the ones of you, that is why she resembles you. Eventually she would become a exact copy of Sora that Xemnas would control."

"Poor girl…" Kairi's voice trailed off sadly; another person who was hurt by Xehanort.

"In the end she fought Roxas so that he had no other choice but to kill her, and when that happened all memory of her existence disappeared. But when Sora released Ventus, the memories were also released, and now they are coming back slowly."

Kairi looked down at all the flowers as a tear trickled down her cheek, "Could I see her… please?"

Her Nobody looked up slowly with a smile on her face; Kairi turned around and there she was, just as Lea had described her. A girl in an Organization XIII coat was walking towards them. Her face and eyes were the same as Kairi's and Naminé's, but she had black hair that was about the same length as Kairi's was when she was fourteen.

The girl sat beside them with a slight smile, "Hello Kairi, it's nice to finally meet you."

"And you, except I wish I knew your name."

"You will find that out soon enough," the girl told her, "I hear that Axel is asking about me."

Kairi giggled, "Yea, Lea is beginning to remember you… slowly but he's remembering."

The girl laughed, her eyes shining with joy, "Yea! Riku is also remembering and so is Sora, through Roxas."

"Riku knows you?"

"Yea," she nodded, "He protected and watched over me during the times that I abandoned the Organization." Kairi was surprised. The girl suddenly jumped, "Oh, I almost forgot!" She pulled out three sea-salt ice cream bars. "Roxas, Axel, and I used to go up onto the Twilight Town clock tower after work and we would eat ice cream together." Kairi and Naminé took the ice cream and the three of them began to eat. "Kairi, tell Axel not to worry. I'll see him again real soon!"

"Ok!" Then the dream faded away. Kairi woke up and went out into the main room; Lea was out there already but none of the Autobots except for Ratchet were there.

The pyro looked down from the catwalk, "Good morning Kairi… today's the day when we see our friends again!"

"I am very glad you two have been keeping quiet so that I could work," the medic said, "Normally houseguests can be such a bother." He was looking through a giant microscope at the purple liquid that he had scraped off Arcee. As Lea came down and stood beside Kairi a loud metallic clang resounded throughout the base.

Lea called up to Ratchet as he looked at them, "We didn't do it!"

Ratchet shook his head and went back to his work. Then a loud clicking sound filled the air and Ratchet jumped up, "… Optimus?" He turned towards the Groundbridge tunnel and exclaimed, "But the Allspark!"

A small robot thing with four legs was clicking across the floor towards them. Ratchet grabbed a pipe and began to attack it. Lea and Kairi summoned their weapons and joined in. The knocked the thing back, but that only made it angrier. It continued to evade all three's attacks and even smashed up one of Ratchet's tool. "I NEEDED THAT!" As the thing jumped at him one last time he braced himself but the thing was shot… once by Optimus and twice more by Kairi and Lea using fire spells.

Lea approached it slowly, "What in Kingdom Hearts could have caused that?"

"I…" The Prime began but suddenly the creature twitched and jumped up. The pyro barely had time to act as it jumped at him; he tried to move but the little monster drew one of it's sharp legs across Lea's chest.

The pyro let out a sharp cry of pain as blood began to drip from the large wound. As the thing began to come after Kairi Ratchet brought his foot down onto it.

"Lea, are you alright?" The Prime asked in concern as Lea clutched his throbbing chest.

Kairi summoned her Keyblade, "Let me handle it, Optimus." She held up her blade and a green Cure aura surrounded Lea.

"Great… my shirt has a large tear in it, and it's covered in blood!" Kairi reached over and gave the pyro a good smack right where the wound had been. "OW! What was that for?"

"Your friend said she'll see you soon, so you shouldn't be trying to get yourself killed!" Lea clutched his chest and glared up at Kairi, who was now smirking at him.

Ratchet stared down at them in shock, but Optimus drew his medic's attention, "While I have no insight on how the boy was cured, but I do believe I know what caused your tool to revive… Dark Energon. If the residue found by Arcee on Cliffjumper brought your broken equipment to life, if would stand to reason that the very same substance brought Cliffjumper back from the dead."

"Whoa," Kairi gasped, "A zombie robot!"

The Prime put what was left of the living tool into a canister and hid it from view. Ratchet though about his leader's words, "That would account for his life signal inexplicably coming back online; but, Dark Energon? It's so scarce as to be virtually nonexistent! What would it be doing on earth?"

"Or it was transported," Prime said harshly, "By Megatron."

"For what purpose?"

Optimus looked down at the two humans at his feet, "To conquer this planet, by raising an army of the dead."

"Well," laughed Lea, "Megatron will need to break quite a few toaster ovens. I mean, where on this world would he find that many Cybertronian dead?"

Before Optimus could reply they heard the sound of engines humming as Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and Arcee pulled in with their three human companions. The kids looked like they had been having a great time that morning; Miko even brought her electric guitar, which she had left in Bulkhead's backseat.

Suddenly an alert went off and Riku's face appeared on a screen, "Optimus, we are right over your world. Where do you want us to land at?"

"We will send you coordinates and from there we will Groundbridge you to our base. You must understand we can't send you the coordinates of our base, because our enemies might be monitoring this transmission."

The young Keyblade Master nodded, "I understand sir, and we'll be there in a few minutes."

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

The group landed in a remote forest area, "Riku, are you sure we're in the right place?"

"Ven, I followed to coordinates from Optimus exactly. Now we're waiting for the 'Groundbridge' that's going to bring us to their base." To the utter shock of everyone a large, green, swirling, portal opened before them.

Goofy gulped, "Is that the Groundbridge?"

"I really hope so."

Sora was antsy, "Who cares… we have to get to Kairi!" Without a second's delay he dashed through the portal.

"SORA WAIT!" Donald cried; but the boy would not stop. The group sighed and followed him through.

The brunette ran into the base and stopped with a gasp. All around him were giant robots, and there were only four humans in sight, one of which was Lea.

Suddenly, from his left came a loud cry of delight, "SORA!"

"KAIRI!" She ran into his outstretched arms, he lifted her off the ground, and spun her around. The others came in just in time to see this. Riku smiled as Lea came over beside them with a smile. The Princess sighed happily as she looked up into the horizon blue eyes of Sora.

The others surrounded them all smiling. Miko put her hands happily on her heart and sighed, Jack gave them a large smile, and Raf laughed at the group of friends. All the Autobots were happy to see Lea and Kairi reunited with their companions.

Ven clapped lea on the back happily, "Lea, you are the craziest, most reckless person I've ever met!"

"Lea," Donald quacked, "we are gonna have to talk about you disobeying the King and Master Yen Sid's orders!" The pyro rolled his eyes; Donald saw that and began to yell at him.

Sora still had his arms wrapped around Kairi and the Princess had laid her head on his chest. "Oh Kairi, I thought I'd lost you."

"You might have if not for Lea," she told him.

"I know," Sora looked over at Lea who was still being yelled at by Donald, "Hey Lea, thank you for saving Kairi."

The pyro looked over and smiled, "Don't mention it! She may be your girlfriend but she's like a sister to me."

Optimus Prime came over and knelt down beside the group, "I am Optimus Prime, the one you spoke to."

"Yes sir," Riku nodded, "I am Keyblade Master Riku, this is Ventus or Ven as he likes to be called, the duck is Donald, the dog is Goofy, and the lover-boy is Sora." The last comment received a glare from said, 'lover-boy'.

"This is our medic Ratchet, my scout Bumblebee, Arcee, and Bulkhead," the Prime told him. He glanced over at the three other humans, "The children are Jack, Rafael, and Miko."

Ratchet walked over to Riku, "Are the rest of you also Keyblade wielders?" Riku nodded. "I believed that Keyblade wielders had vanished long ago with the end of the Keyblade war, I did not realize how many there still were."

"There aren't many," put in Ven, "And the majority here are newer Keyblade wielders, and actually Donald and Goofy aren't Keyblade wielders."

Prime stood up tall, "We are glad that you are reunited but we have some urgent matters to attend to." He looked over at his Autobots, "Autobots prepare to…" He looked down at the children near their guardian's feet.

"Roll out?" Arcee offered with a smile.

"Remain here," Prime finished, "Ratchet, you will come with me along with Lea and Master Riku. Arcee, we will be out of communications range for some time, so I am putting you in charge."

The young Asian girl looked up at Bulkhead and exclaimed, "Dude, you're the biggest you should be the boss!"

"He, ah, never picks me."

"Optimus, with all due respect," put in Arcee, "Playing bodyguard's one thing, babysitting's another." This caused all the humans to glare at her. "Besides, Ratchet hasn't been on the field since the war!"

"My pistons may be rusty but my hearing is sharp as ever!" growled the medic.

Optimus gently informed her, "For the moment, it is only reconnaissance… or else I would not be allowing two humans to accompany us."

"Then why do I hear an edge in your voice?"

"Arcee," he replied in a sharper tone, "Much has changed in the last twenty- four hours and we all need to adapt." He turned back to Ratchet, "Ratchet, bridge us out." The two bots and the two Keybladers went through the ground bridge and vanished.

Jack clapped his hands together, "Ok, chief, so, ah… what's on the activities list?"

"I'm going on patrol," she glared as she headed towards the exit ramp.

Bulkhead wasn't happy, "But Optimus told us to stay.

"When you're in charge, you can call the shots… Bee, Kairi, Sora with me!" The three groaned but followed her. "Bulkhead, you're in charge." She and Bumblebee transformed and Sora got in Bee while Kairi got on Arcee. Then they drove off.

Bulkhead had no idea of what to do, "So, ah, what's on the activities list?"

Suddenly a loud high-pitched whine ripped through the air. They all looked over and saw Miko plugging in her electric guitar to an amp. "How about band practice!"

Ven wasn't amused, "Um… we're not a band."

"Why so antisocial? Come on Ven!" Miko looked over at Raf, "You play anything?"

The boy shyly bent down and grasped his laptop, "K…keyboard."

"Laptops and samples, good! Jack?"

He shrugged, "I sometimes mess around on the harmonica?"

"Do I look like country?" groaned the girl, "Just… cover yourself in fake blood and jump around screaming." Donald and Goofy gave her a strange look as she turned to Bulkhead, "Bulkhead! Percussion! We'll go for a big industrial sound!" Her eyes landed on the duck, "Annnddd, what can you do?"

"Magic."

"Fire?"

"Yes."

Miko beamed, "Pyrotechnics! This is great! What about you two?"

Goofy sheepishly chuckled, "Trumpet?"

"Uh… fine, but you better be good!" she looked over at Ven, "And you?"

"I don't play anything… my master was never really into the arts."

Miko sighed, "Then you can join Jack." She composed herself and smiled, "Anyways, and D.I.Y. we're a band! You just gotta learn the songs; this one's a ballad, 'My Fist, Your Face'!" She strummed a few chords on her instrument, causing everyone to cover their ears.

Suddenly a loud alarm blared over the so-called music; Bulkhead held up his hand and shushed the over-excited girl. "The proximity sensor! Quick! Hide!" The three kids, Miko still holding her guitar, rushed behind the bot's foot as Ven, Donald, and Goofy jumped behind a large crate.

Agent Fowler came out, angrier than ever, "PRIME!"

"Agent Fowler," Bulkhead stuttered, "He's not here… nobody's here… accept me, of course."

"Well, where did he go? Wait; don't tell me, he's out pancaking a mini-mall!" The government man began to come down off the catwalk, "Now, I don't know what language you bots speak on your planet, but Prime promised he would handle the Decepticons."

During this Bulkhead moved and caught the cord to Miko's guitar; it pulled her forward and as the boys pulled her back the bot's foot struck a cord and caused the guitar to squeal.

Fowler didn't take notice, "And blowing a crater in the middle of Nebraska is not what the word 'handle' means in English. So you tell Prime…" The guitar squealed again, much to everyone else's dismay. The agent noticed the cord coming from behind the wreaker's foot, "Since when are you bots electric?"

Slowly all six organics came into view. "Hey, how ya doing?"

"CONTACT WITH CIVILIANS!" roared Fowler, "Team Prime has really gone off-book this time! Wait; don't tell me… you're running a daycare center."

While the bot scrambled for words Jack tried to get them out of this situation, "We're… interns!

"Student interns!"

"Uh, earning extra credit in…"

"Robotics!"

Fowler sighed, exasperated, "Ok, let's move. I'm taking all six of you into federal custody… what are they?" He finally noticed that Donald and Goofy weren't human.

"Um Agent Fowler sir," Ventus went up to him, "I, and my two friends Donald and Goofy are not 'civilians'; actually we're not from this world. Us three and some other friends of ours are just passing through, and we will be out of your hair soon."

"What are they?"

Ven sighed, "He's a duck, and the head magician for King Mickey of Disney Town. And he's a dog, and the captain of the guard for King Mickey. I am Ventus former apprentice to Master Eraqus, Keyblade wielder." He summoned his blade in an effort to convince Fowler.

The agent was convinced but he still turned to the other three, "Well, you three are coming with me. It's for your own protection."

He moved closer to them but Bulkhead put his foot down between them, "We're protecting them!"

"Is that so?" the man went over to a phone on the wall, "Well, maybe you can explain that to my superiors at the Pentagon!"

As he picked up the phone, Bulk reached down and crushed it with his finger, "Don't use that phone, it's out of order."

"This isn't over big foot! Not by a long shot!" He stormed out and flew off in his helicopter.

* * *

(With Riku and co.)

They came out of the Groundbridge in a dark canyon. Prime led them on a long walk westwards. After a while Ratchet became a little agitated, "Optimus what do we hope to find here?"

"The sight of the largest Cybertronian battlefield in this galaxy," answered the Prime.

"On this world?" Lea was confused, "You must be joking."

Riku took one look at Optimus's face, "I don't think so Lea."

"Ratchet, do you recall the period late in the war, when both sides began hiding their Energon spoils off world?"

"Of course, it's the reason Energon deposits exist on planets such as this one."

Optimus gave a small nod, "It is also the reason battles came to be waged on planets such as this one. And I fear Megatron's memory is as long as history."

Riku and Lea looked over at each other in concern; this Megatron sounded too much like Xehanort.

* * *

(At the Autobot base)

A loud alert sounded throughout the base, causing all organics to cover their ears. Bulkhead went to the computer, "It's an SOS, from Fowler!" He tried to work the computer, "Uh…"

"Did you trace it?" asked Goofy, worry filling his voice.

"Location scan was incomplete, oh well." The bot turned his back on the computer.

Ven was dumbfounded, "OH WELL! Seriously?"

"Fowler's a jerk!"

"Whoa," the Keyblader exclaimed in anger, "Whether you like the guy or not the Decepticons may have him… if you were in his situation what would you want him to do?"

Raf was also very scared, "And, Agent Fowler knows your location… our location."

"And, did we not just witness how fast Fowler backs down from a bot; the Cons will totally make him squeal!" Miko added.

"But we lost the transmission Fowler could be anywhere!"

Raf held his laptop in his hands, "Maybe I can narrow it down." He sat down and opened up the computer. "About five years ago the government started micro chipping their agents; you know, like owners do with pets." Everyone stared at the kid in surprise. "What! I saw it on TV! Anyway, if I can hack into the fed's mainframe maybe I can pinpoint Fowler's coordinates."

"You know how to hack? But you're like, two years old!"

"Twelve," corrected Raf, "and a quarter!"

After a few minutes of relentless typing the boy called out, "Latitude thirty-nine point five; longitude one hundred sixteen point nine."

"Ven, Donald, Goofy, you're with me," he typed in the coordinates and opened the ground bridge. "You three stay here!"

"Aw! Don't break up the band!"

The bot turned back to the remaining kids, "Uh, Jack, you're in charge!"

As they guys came through Ven saw a large black battleship before them, "What in Kingdom Hearts?"

"Looks like we found the whole Decepticon shah-bang!"

"Alright," came a familiar voice, "What's the plan?" Miko was ducked behind a small rock; actually she was basically out in plain sight.

"Miko!" Suddenly the girl was spotted by a sentry on the ship.

"Oh… unwise."

Donald quacked, "Miko get down!" The drone readied his weapon and Miko barely managed to get out from behind the rock before it was blasted to bits.

Before the drone could get another shot, Ven jumped into Fever Pitch and slammed his sword down on the drone. Bulkhead came up and drove his gigantic fist into the Decepticon's face. He yelled at the warriors, "Ven, guys get back!" Everyone jumped back as Bulkhead continued to grapple with the Con. Suddenly he yelled, "Miko look away!"

"But!"

"Turn your head away!" The girl didn't do what he said. The Autobot drove his fist into the Con's chest and began ripping his inner wirings out. Ven, Donald, and Goofy were in utter shock, but Miko was even more excited. The robot collapsed.

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Kairi and Sora sat inside Bumblebee and talked. Sora suddenly remembered something, "Hey Kairi, Marie wanted me to give this to you." He handed her the bow; it fit right on the end of her Keyblade. In a flash of light her sword had changed; the guard and shaft looked like the Eiffel Tower and the blade was a musical note. The name that came to Kairi's mind was Sounds of Paris.

Suddenly Bulkhead called Arcee on the comlink, "Arcee, Bumblebee do you read me?"

"Loud and clear Bulk."

"I've got a situation."

Arcee sighed, "Bulkhead they're children, humans… just, do whatever." As the reply came in, the two Autobot's screeched to a halt, "You're where SHE'S WHERE?

Kairi groaned, "Miko is crazy, the Decepticons will kill her!"

"Call Jack," Sora said, "He can bridge us to the base and then to Bulk."

"You're right, Jack, Jack come in. We need you to bridge us back!" Arcee got nervous when no answer came back. "Scrap! Bee, metal to the pedal!" At a gut- wrenching speed they drove towards Bulkhead's location.

* * *

(With Ven and co.)

Donald was getting impatient, "What's taking them so long?"

Suddenly the Groundbridge opened up, but instead of Arcee, Bumblebee, Sora, and Kairi it was Jack and Raf.

"No way," Ven face palmed.

Without warning the two boys were at blaster point from two drones on the ship. "Scrap!"

* * *

(With Riku and co.)

The two bots and two humans finally came out of the gorge into an open area surrounded by sheer cliffs. In front of them was a large field of battle, dead Cybertronians lay everywhere. "I… I can't believe it," Lea gasped.

"For the first time in my life Optimus," Ratchet said solemnly, "I had hoped that you were wrong."

Above them streaked a silver jet. "Is that Megatron?" asked Riku.

"Yes," the Prime's optics narrowed.

The leader of the Decepticon's transformed at the end of the plain, atop the rocks. He was a large silver robot, with a huge cannon on his arm, glowing purple eyes, and a glowing Decepticon insignia. "Optimus… been well? I see you brought your trusty watchdog, I was certain he'd be convalescing in a scrap yard by now."

"Why don't you invite him down here for a check?"

The Megatron spotted the two humans along side them; he laughed, "And I also see that you brought two human 'pets'."

"Oh," Riku growled, "Please invite him down here!"

Lea agreed, "We'll show him that these 'pets' can kick his big titanium butt all the way to Cybertron and back!"

Optimus overlooked their eagerness, "I know why you are here Megatron."

"Hardly a surprise Optimus! After all, you and I have been at this a long time; and your time has come to an end!" He pulled up a large shard of glowing dark Energon and threw it down upon the former battlefield. It sunk into the ground, causing purple cracks to appear. "RISE MY ARMY!"

Undead Cybertronians began to come up from the ground before the four heroes. Ratchet was now very worried, "By the Allspark!"

Everyone was a little scared now and Megatron saw this, "Behold! The power of Dark Energon!" The undead warriors slowly started walking towards them!

"He desecrated the graves of not only Autobots but of his own men as well," Riku stated angrily.

"Not even the dead are safe from Megatron's hand."

The leader of the Decepticons, now glowing all over, roared, "DESTROY THEM!"

* * *

**For the Good**

Craziness, that's all that's been going on! Kairi was kidnapped, Saïx attacked, and the two ended up on some random world. But it works out! They make new friends and are able to help the Autobots in their struggle against the Decepticons.

While Kairi getting kidnapped looked bad, it turned out alright in the end. Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." God can take your toughest situation and bring you out of it better than before.

Look at my other story, _Maybe you can Hire_…. In that story Kairi and Riku are captured and Lea has to rescue them. In the end he does end of finding and rescuing them, and he has earned the trust of Kairi.

From the point of view of Kairi in this chapter, things seemed hopeless; she was in the enemy castle with no one and seemingly no way to escape. But her dire situation was changed into one that worked for the best, and the same thing can be done in your dire situation. When all hope seems lost ask the Lord to help you, and he will work it out for your good.

* * *

Yes, done! Hey just sayin' I would like you all to join me for church on Sunday morning! Just go to .org and on Sunday mornings at 9 or 11 US central time, they have a live streaming of the service!


	11. Chapter 11: Cyber Cite part 2

Man… this chapter took off! I love it! Please review! I want feedback Please! Ok, just saying, for those who read Sightless Love… I know it was kinda bad. Romance writing is not my strongest area, but had to try it once! So I apologies for that. Just asking who saw the Kingdom Hearts 3 trailer? I nearly had a heart attack!

A warning to you, there is a LOT of pov switching in this chapter… and I mean A LOT!

I would like to thank Tigeresslilly and Riilustra- Your Sweetest Sin for favoriting!

I own nothing!

* * *

**Cyber Cite part 2**

* * *

Riku drew his Keyblade and glared at the army of robot zombies that lumbered towards them. Optimus's hands turned into a blaster, and he began shooting. The shots, that normally would have killed anyone else, only seemed to stun the approaching zombies.

"Optimus, if these guys are already dead… how can we possibly defeat them?" Lea asked nervously as the enemies drew nearer.

"Ratchet, Lea, Riku retreat; bridge yourselves back to base."

"No!" Ratchet exclaimed, his hands turning into small swords, "I shall stand with you, Optimus."

"As will we!" Riku held up his Keyblade as Lea drew out his Keyblade and chakram.

The doctor stepped up beside his leader, "You may require a medic when this is all over." The group launched into the fray; because of their size in comparison to these titans, Riku and Lea teamed up on their opponents. Ratchet sliced a zombie up and noticed that the parts stopped working after they were cut off. "I recommend dissection! The smaller the pieces, the better."

The Autobot leader changed his guns out for swords, "Sound advice old friend." The four tore through the legion, cutting the zombies to pieces.

Megatron looked on, "I have mastered Dark Energon; when you fall Optimus you too shall join my army." This comment did nothing to faze the Autobots or the humans.

* * *

(With Ven and co.)

The Decepticons up on the battleship began shooting at the two helpless boys on the ground. Donald managed to get up a defense spell before either one was hurt.

Bulkhead transformed and drove between the boys and their attackers. "GET IN, NOW!" As the two climbed in, the three warriors gave them cover from Ven's glider. Bulkhead began to drive away from the battle, and Ven came and met him behind some rocks. Jack and Raf got out, "Ven, could you please stay with them?"

"Yes, Donald Goofy go with him, I can handle this." The duck and dog climbed atop Bulkhead's vehicle form and nodded.

The Autobot drove towards the Cons as fast as he could, drawing their fire away from where the kids were. He went around behind the ship, towards a rock wall; Bulk transformed and began to climb upwards with Donald and Goofy on his shoulders. When he was high enough, he leapt onto the warship and began taking out all the Cons.

When all the enemies on deck were taken care of Goofy heard a small tapping noise from Bulkhead's chest-plate. The plate opened to reveal Miko, hiding in a small compartment in his chest. "Miko?"

"I heaved on your floor mats," the girl was breathing heavily, "sorry…" She looked ready to 'heave' again as she climbed into the bot's hand.

"What are you doing here Miko?" Donald squawked angrily.

She didn't answer him, "Remind me never to do that again!"

Without warning another drone tackled Bulk; he threw it off and began rearranging it's faceplate. Right behind the girl rose two more drones! As one reached for her, Goofy hit it in the face a couple times with his shield. As more drones appeared, Miko crouched down on the ground as the two animals stood over her and fought.

Bulkhead grabbed a huge sensor disc of the warship and lobbed it at the Decepticons, killing them all. He picked up Miko, but more enemies began to shoot at him from behind. With a groan he saw that all he could do was take her into the warship with him, "Donald, Goofy, come on!" They leapt into an open hatch and were gone.

* * *

(With Ven and co.)

The three boys looked on from behind the rock, Ventus not daring to go up and help in fear of leaving Jack and Raf unprotected. They spotted Bulkhead, Miko, and the other two just as they went into the ship.

"Think they forgot about us?" asked Raf.

Before Ven could answer he was hit from behind; the Keyblader collapsed and the other two saw a man in a black coat along with two Decepticon drones right behind them.

* * *

(With Donald and co.)

Miko was still sitting in Bulk's hand as he ran through the ship; the others were back on his shoulders. The girl again looked like she was going to hurl. Two drones got in their way; the Autobot slid the human girl across the floor and under the Cons, allowing him, Donald, and Goofy to attack.

"Uh, I'm gonna heave again." Bulkhead scooped Miko up and kept on running.

* * *

(With Ven and co.)

Ven regained consciousness and saw that his arms and legs were bound tightly in a thick metal wire, and that he was being carried by a drone. Behind him he could see another Decepticon carrying Jack and Raf.

"Bring them to the brig," the one holding Ven was saying, "Commander Starscream is keeping the other human there."

"Fowler…"

Suddenly their came the roar of engines, and down the hallway to their left came Bumblebee, Arcee, Kairi, and Sora. The slammed into the Cons, knocking them down; Arcee transformed and caught Jack and Raf while Sora flew by on his glider and caught Ventus by his arm.

The femme smiled to see that the three boys were unharmed. She reached over and undid the wires around Ven. "Appreciate you clearing the front door for us, but storming the Decepticon warship was not on the activities list."

"Tell me about it!" The seven ran down a long hallway and stopped at a corner. Arcee bent around, gun out, and found herself staring at Bulkhead.

"Friendly!"

"Hello!"

"Brought the others huh?" Kairi asked.

Bulkhead was very defensive, "You try getting them to stay behind!"

"We need to find Fowler and get these kids out of here!"

"Uh," Ven, Jack, and Raf stuttered, "He's in the brig."

From then on, the going was much tougher, Decepticons came up around every bend, and the three civilians were put in more and more danger. The Keybladers stood around them and never left their sides. Mayhem was all around, and the three were terrified.

For the kids, time seemed to slow down and the run took forever. Death seemed so close even with the bots and Keyblade wielders defending them. More than once, a dismembered Decepticon arm or head would fly almost on top of the kids.

* * *

(With Riku and co.)

Riku breathed heavily, the battle was taking a big toll on him; Lea felt the same, and he wondered why. Normally they wouldn't have been this exhausted after fighting for such a short time. But the boys could see that even Optimus and Ratchet were weary, and they had to conclude that it was an outside force making them feel this way.

"Optimus," grunted the medic, "This prolonged exposure to Dark Energon is sapping our strength."

The pyro nodded, "It's the same with us."

"We cannot falter now," the Prime encouraged. With a nod, they again began to fight.

The zombies began closing in on Riku and Lea; Optimus, seeing this, stood over them and the dark creatures clambered onto the Prime and began weighing him down. The same thing happened to Ratchet.

Megatron was very happy about the way this fight was going. Beside him a dark portal opened and a man in a black coat stepped out, "Hey Megs remember we need at least one of those humans alive!"

"You will have your prisoner, Xigbar, though he might not be in perfect condition."

"As long as he's alive," Xigbar smirked, "He'll do just fine."

Megatron looked down at the human who stood beside him, "I'll have the Heartless retrieve one or both of the humans, and then you can have your pick on which one you want use."

"Sounds like a plan; I'll be coming around later to pick him up then."

The watched as, out of the pile in which they boys and Optimus were buried, Optimus's blade shot out. He began blasting all those on top of them and then burst out in a fury. The group ran over and assisted Ratchet, who was being pummeled by zombies.

"After all these years Optimus," the Decepticon leader praised, "Still at the top of your game."

Then a voice that made Riku and Lea look up in anger shouted, "I still can't believe you'll made it out of that. Flamey-locks, Shady… bravo!"

"Xigbar!" Riku glared up at him, "You're working with Megatron?"

The man reached up and removed his hood, revealing his silver-streaked dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, his scarred up face, eye patch, and glowing golden eye. "You betcha, when Flamey-locks over there brought the Princess to this world, how could we not follow?"

"Megatron is working with humans?" Ratchet was amazed.

"It is only a temporary arrangement."

Xigbar smiled, "Well I better split before the Old Coot back home gets antsy." He stepped into a dark corridor and vanished.

Optimus had heard enough talk, he charged Megatron and the others followed. "My legion," Megatron ordered, "Finish them! But bring me the two flesh creatures, alive!"

Riku and Lea were being grabbed at from all angles, but as long as they were still able to lift their swords they would fight!

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

The group made it to the bridge of the warship. Most of the guards had been out fighting them, so it was an easy task ending the ones left over.

Jack and the other two kids came in after the others. Sora went over to them, "Wait in here."

"But Sora…"

Arcee agreed with the brunette, "They're slowing us down and they're easy targets! They'll be alright in here, as long as they stay put." She walked off.

Kairi began to follow but was stopped by Sora, "Kairi, could you stay here with them?"

"Sora?"

He looked her in the eyes, "Please, I don't want you getting hurt; do this, for me." She nodded and stood over beside the other three as the others left.

When the door to the bridge was closed Miko couldn't contain her excitement, "That, was intense!"

"Was?"

Jack was furious at her, "It's your fault that we're stuck in this intensity! What were you thinking Miko?"

"Uh, did I ask you to follow me?"

"You wanted us to be a band! Doesn't that usually mean playing together?"

"Well maybe I decided to go solo!"

"Well, maybe I have some regard for your safety!"

"Oh," Miko rolled her eyes, "Is your name Optimus? You can leave my protection to Bulkhead, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!"

"Ahh!" Raf was tired of the fighting, "STOP IT! BOTH OF YOU!" He ran over to a giant step and sat down.

Kairi came over and sat beside him, "It's gonna be fine Raf. The bots will come back for us." Miko and Jack came down beside them.

"Yea, the Japanese girl added, "They're gonna take us home."

"How do you know?"

The other three sat in silence. Jack looked upwards and asked, "Hey Raf, what do you make of that?"

They all looked up and on a large screen was a complicated formula. Raf got up and went closer to it, "Its important, real important!"

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

The group continued to battle their way towards the brig, and were finally right outside the doors. Sora gave a big smile and knocked hard on the big doors. Bulkhead held up a dead drone, to make it seem like they weren't there.

The same silver bot that had blown the mine stood before Agent Fowler, who was hanging from chains. "Well?"

Bulk dropped the drone and pointed his blaster at the bot. Ven and Sora shot up and destroyed the only drone in the room besides the silver bot. "Who is that," Sora asked.

"Well the drones who had me, Raf, and Jack mentioned a Commander Starscream, this could be him," Ven concluded. Bee and Bulk came in after the two humans, weapons at the ready.

Starscream's arm changed into a blaster and he pointed it at Fowler, "Not so fast!" Then someone tapped him on the head.

He looked up and there was Arcee, Donald, and Goofy with weapons aimed at his head.

The femme growled, "I wouldn't."

"Oh," seeker snarled back, "But I might."

* * *

(With Kairi and co.)

They all stared up at the formula, trying to figure out what it was. "We've gotta get this to Optimus!"

Miko looked down at the younger boy, "How do you know it isn't just a recipe for space nachos?"

"I know math when I see it, and that is one serious equation!"

Kairi looked down at him, "Can you download it?"

"I've got a flash drive!" Raf dug through his backpack and pulled it out. "But I don't see anywhere to plug it in."

"Um Raf," Kairi sighed, "I don't think they had human tech in mind when they designed this thing, sorry."

"Yea, this tech is way alien!"

Suddenly a voice came from behind them, "There you are." They all turned and saw a figure in a black coat behind them. "I was wondering where you went off to."

"You again," Jack began to back away.

"Wait," Kairi exclaimed, "You've seen him before?"

"He knocked out Ven and captured us!"

The man took off his hood and Kairi stared into the golden eyes of the Young Xehanort. "I was only after Ventus, but you two were an extra prize. Now Princess, you have an appointment with my most future self."

"Never!" Kairi summoned her Keyblade.

The young man did also, "You act as if you actually have a choice in the matter!"

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

It was a tense situation with both Starscream and Fowler at gun-point. The seeker acted like he had the upper servo, "Now, Agent Fowler and I will take our leave."

Suddenly the chained man yelled, "The emu says 'YYEEEEAAA'!" This attracted Starscream's attention long enough for Sora to jump up and slam on his blaster. The Con gave a frightened shriek as he turned and the others began to attack him.

In a desperate attempt to escape he transformed into a sleek jet and shot out, blowing Arcee and the Disney crew back.

* * *

(With Kairi and co.)

The man smirked at the young girl before him. "Let's not make this any harder than it has to be Princess."

"Sounds good to me!" Kairi charged him and hacked relentlessly at Xehanort.

In an attempt to throw her off, he launched a Dark Fiagara spell towards Raf. Jack saw this and pulled the boy out of the way just in time. He yelled at the Japanese girl, "Miko take a picture!"

"Great idea!" She pulled out her phone and yelled, "Hey golden eyes!" Then she snapped a picture.

"Miko," Kairi yelled, "Not of him, of the formula!"

"Oh!" She took a quick photo and then the three backed away.

Kairi turned into her warrior form and sliced at Xehanort. The young man didn't seem phased, but suddenly his eyes glowed a little brighter and he backed off. "We'll continue this soon Princess, I promise." He disappeared, but he left a number of Dusk, Samurai, and Berserker Nobodies in his place.

"Guys, let's move!" The four ran out the door as fast as they could. Kairi trying to kill off the Nobodies, but there were too many. Suddenly a car horn sounded behind them. They all turned to see Sora and Ven slice through the Nobodies on their gliders. Behind those two came the Autobots.

Sora yelled, "I told you to stay put!" Kairi smiled and jumped on his glider, Jack got on Arcee, while Miko and Raf got into Bumblebee. They all drove or flew out of the warship and back to the base.

* * *

(With Riku and co.)

Most of the zombies were spare parts by now, but the four heroes were tired and wounded. The Keybladers were too weak to use magic; Riku had a large gash in his shoulder and Lea's right leg was bleeding badly.

Optimus finally finished off the last creature. "Bravo Optimus," his arch nemesis praised, "Though this is but a prelude. You may wish to save your strength for the main event!"

The Prime put away his sword and began climbing the cliff wall towards Megatron. "You will not prevail Megatron. Not while Energon still flows through my veins."

The Decepticon leader smiled evilly, "Fitting, for it is Dark Energon which flows through mine." Optimus leapt at him, but Megatron transformed and flew off.

Ratchet climbed up beside his leader, with both humans on his shoulders. "If this wasn't Megatron's end game, what is?"

Optimus stared out over the battlefield resolutely.

* * *

(At the Autobot base)

All had made it back safe and sound, but all were injured; Kairi had quite a bit of spell casting to do before all the organics were fixed up. It was too bad that Cure spells wouldn't work on Cybertronians, because they needed it.

Fowler was unconscious on a hospital bed; the spell had physically healed him, but he was still drained.

Miko looked over a Riku who was rubbing his formerly wounded shoulder, "What happened to you guys anyway?"

"We engaged an army of undead Cybertronian warriors," Ratchet told her.

Sora was shocked, "You guys fought robot zombies?" Lea and Riku nodded. "Wow, and I thought we had it rough."

"Zombies!" Miko was excited, again, "You fought zombies and I missed it?"

Lea got up and firmly grasped her shoulder, "Miko, do you understand? Every single one of us nearly got killed!"

"Bulkhead, you exercised extremely poor judgment in allowing Jack, Miko, and Raf to accompany you," Optimus reprimanded him.

"It won't happen again Optimus, I promise."

Miko came to her guardian's defense, "But it wasn't Bulkhead's fault!"

"Miko please!"

"And check it out," the girl pulled out her phone, "recon!"

Optimus bent down and looked at the photo, "Ratchet, take a look. It could be of some importance to Megatron."

"Whoa," Kairi exclaimed, "Megatron's back?"

"That's really bad news, right?" Jack was kind of nervous now.

Miko held up her phone for the medic, but she had accidentally changed the picture. "I don't understand."

"Oops," Miko realized her mistake, "That's the creepy dude who tried to take Kairi and blast Raf with black fire. At least before Kairi chased him off with her Keyblade!" Sora looked up sharply, had Kairi almost been kidnapped again?

"Miko!" Jack growled, "Raf was almost killed! This isn't a game! When are you gonna get that through your thick skull!"

"Um, we were all almost killed, Jack! You, me, Raf, even them!"

"Well, if this was just an average day with the Autobots then I don't wanna be a part of it, not anymore!"

Everyone stared at him wide-eyed; Optimus was understanding though, "Jack, putting you in harm's way was never our intent. However, it is no longer the safety of you three that is at risk, but the safety of all humans on this world. We will respect your decision if you wish to leave."

Ratchet swiftly opened up the Groundbridge, "No point in long goodbyes, here's the door."

"Come-on Raf," Jack said turning to the younger boy.

But Raf looked over at Bee and just couldn't leave, "I'll be ok Jack, see you at school."

"Sure thing." He stopped by Lea and Kairi, "It was nice meeting you two, hope you guys make it." They both smiled and nodded. Jack went down the catwalk, only to be stopped by Arcee. He looked up at her, "I know, you don't exist."

"Don't make me hunt you down." She sighed, in such a short time she had grown so attached to that boy. Now he left without looking back.

Lea looked up at Optimus and quietly said, "After Miko and Raf go home, the rest of us will just camp out here and stay out of the way."

"Alright, Lea."

After the other kids had left and the rest of the gang had gone to bed, Riku stayed up to talk with Optimus. Ratchet was working on the schematics that he had downloaded from Miko's phone. "It can't be… Optimus!" The leader came over, Riku in his hand. "These are engineering specs for a space time vortex generator."

"Megatron's building a space bridge, if he hasn't already."

Bulkhead came up behind them, "The sooner he leaves the better!"

"Bulkhead," Optimus said, "A space bridge runs in two directions. Megatron may not be using it to leave this world, but to bring through his conquering army."

"The main event Megatron referred to, but the only place Megatron could possibly recruit that many fallen warriors…"

"Precisely," he answered the medic, "Cybertron."

Riku looked up at the Prime, "Optimus, my friends and I are here to help, if there is anything we can do, we will do it. And because of our presence here, this world has a new danger, the Heartless and the Organization. We know that today two of our enemies have been spotted. We saw Xigbar, and the others saw the younger Xehanort."

"They too could use the space bridge to their advantage; Master Riku, we will allow you to assist us in this battle."

"Thank you Optimus." Riku hopped out of his hand onto the balcony, and headed off to bed

* * *

(The next morning)

Optimus began explaining the situation to the other humans, and bots who had not been there for the conversation the night before. "We cannot allow Megatron to send Dark Energon through his space bridge. If we fail, the dead of Cybertron will rise, swarm through its vortex, and invade this world, bending the humans to Megatron's twisted rule."

"Optimus," Ratchet interjected, "I've pinpointed the location of Megatron's space bridge, high in this world's orbit."

Ven sighed, "Out of our reach…"

"Ok, so you guys don't fly," Miko questioned, "But can't you just Groundbridge there?"

"I think it's called a 'ground' bridge for a reason, Miko."

Ratchet agreed, "The Groundbridge has limited range. Stretched all the way into orbit its vortex could snap and scatter us to the stars." Sora gulped, he had agreed to go on this mission.

Optimus told them, "Since Megatron may already be in transit, I'm afraid we must take that risk. Reaching the spacebridge first is our only means of stopping him."

"Let's get it on then!" Lea jumped down, "If we might die, lets get it over with before the suspense kills us!"

Then, to their surprise, Arcee rode in with Jack! The boy got off, took off his helmet, and grinned sheepishly, "Hey! Guess whose back?"

"Autobots prepare for departure."

Arcee hadn't heard the conversation, "Where to?"

Miko answered it for her, "The final frontier!"

"Space! I thought they didn't have any way to get there?"

"They don't," Raf admitted, "really…"

Jack looked up at his guardian, "Be seein' ya." She smiled back and joined the bots.

"Optimus," Riku called out, "Ven, Sora, Kairi, Lea, and myself are coming as well." They all activated their armor and summoned their gliders.

Ratchet set in the coordinates and turned on the Groundbridge.

"Be careful Bee."

"I'm so jealous!"

"Don't even think of following him Miko!"

"Optimus," Ratchet grumbled, "If you leave me stranded on a planet teeming with humans I will never forgive you!"

Lea smirked, "Love you too doc bot."

"Until we meet again old friend. Autobots roll out!" The bots transformed and the group went into the Groundbridge. "Maximum overdrive!"

Sora gave a loud, "GERONIMO!"

They all shot out over Cyber Cite's orbit. "Autobots," the leader ordered,

"Transform and gravitize!" Using special circuitry they landed on the side of the spacebridge as the Keybladers flew around them. They turned and saw the Decepticon warship coming towards them.

"So Megatron's packing enough Dark Energon to raise Cybertron's dead?" Arcee was still catching up on what she'd missed.

Kairi flew beside her, "Apparently so, and we can't let anything in or out of this spacebridge!"

"And," Bulkhead added, "He's got those Heartless things."

The ship just sat there stationary for a long while. Lea was getting antsy, "Well, what are they waiting for?"

Optimus studied the ship carefully and soon found the reason, "It appears the Decepticons have sustained serious damage to their interstellar navigation system."

"Huh, that's my handiwork," Bulkhead beamed.

"Good going Bulk!"

"Yes," Riku agreed, "Without the dish Megatron won't be able to lock onto Cybertron!"

Over the comlink they could hear the confused duck, "Don't the Cons know where there own world is?"

"Naturally!" the medic scoffed, "But Cybertron is many light years away, to reach their target their aim must be astronomically precise."

"Well if Megs went to the trouble of coming here now, then he must have another way to lock on."

"Yes Ventus, he must have a remote system somewhere on the planet."

Ratchet wasn't convinced, "From what I know of this world's technology I doubt their exists a single radio telescope dish on this planet powerful enough to pinpoint Cybertron."

"But what about a whole lotta telesoaps?"

"Telescopes!"

"Sorry telescopes," Goofy added.

"Yes," Raf agreed, "Like the giant size array in Texas."

"Zip-ip-ip-ip! This is not child's play!"

Optimus however backed the boy up, "Good thinking Raf. Ratchet, have Agent Fowler alert the array staff to the security hazard."

Sora just barely heard Fowler's voice over the comm, "You soldier! You're out of uniform! Put on some pants!" This sent the Keybladers into a frenzy of laughter.

"That may be a challenge."

"I can't get past the array's firewalls," they heard Raf tell Ratchet; "They're too thick!"

"Wait!" Lea exclaimed, "You actually think you could keep the Decepticons out?"

"Maybe, if I could get in."

Jack offered the solution, "Wait… Raf, what if we could get you all the way in, like inside the building in?"

"I could log in to their internal network on the other side of the firewall."

"The risk it too great," Optimus objected, "The Decepticons will be there, perhaps even on site."

"Optimus, with all do respect, you said it yourself this is bigger than the safety of three humans," Jack calmly countered.

Miko added, "Yea! If we let the Cons win we're fragged, along with everyone else on our planet!"

"Raf?"

There was silence, and then the boy said, "I wanna give it a shot!"

"We'll go with um'!"

"Yea, Goofy and I can protect them!"

The comm went silent and suddenly from the Decepticon ship came a large dark mass. It unfurled it's large metallic tail from around it's body and spread two metal wings out wide. Sora thought it looked like a giant metal dragon! Then the Heartless symbol appeared on it's wings. The Cyber Killer Heartless gave a roar and flew at the small band of defenders.

"Scrap!" Bulkhead stared at the monster, "How are we supposed to beat this thing?"

Optimus drew his blasters, "Team up with the humans and destroy it!"

"Kairi!" Arcee grabbed her glider and threw it with all her might towards the Heartless; the Princess ducked down as she tore through a metal wing.

The Autobot's laid down heavy fire on the creature as it slowly flew closer.

* * *

(With Donald and co.)

The kids, Donald, and Goofy came out of the Groundbridge inside the compound fence. Jack clutched his head as they all staggered from the effects of the space time vortex, "That'll take some getting used to."

"Whoa!" They looked up and saw a huge array of radio telescopes. With a nod the five dashed inside.

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

The Heartless was taking heavy fire from the Autobots, and the Keyblade wielders were keeping it as far away from the spacebridge as possible.

Ven turned his glider nose downward, held onto the back, and sliced the creature's tail right off. With a shriek it whipped around and caught the boy in its mouth.

"VENTUS!" Optimus fired a blast directly into the Cyber Killer's eye and it opened its mouth so that Ven could fly out.

"Thanks Optimus, I owe you one!"

But now the Heartless was even angrier. It roared and charged at the Autobots; Sora, in a split second decision, drove the end of his glider into the back of the Cyber Killer's neck. It gave a gut wrenching scream and then vanished, releasing a heart into the sky.

There was no rest for the defenders though; as soon as the Heartless was gone, drones came out and began another attack. This was more of the Autobot's element, and they went to town on the Decepticons.

* * *

(With Donald and co.)

The gang made it into a room with a computer. Before closing the door, Miko took one last look into the hallway, "Security sure is lax in this place."

Raf was already getting to work; he grinned, "I'm in, and so are the Decepticons!"

"What?" Donald squawked.

Goofy was with his friend, "How do you know?"

"Schematics… with the same alien math we saw on their ship. But this time, I can download um'!" He plugged in his flash drive and got to work.

"It's gotta be the space bridge!"

"The Decepticons are syncing it to the dishes, but I can sync to them!"

Jack was concerned, "Will they know?"

"Even if the Decepticons see that I'm in the system," Raf said cheerfully, "They'll have no idea I'm in the house!"

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Suddenly the spacebridge shook, "What's going on?"

"The Cons must be locking onto Cybertron!" Riku snarled; he hoped Raf could stop them.

* * *

(With Donald and co.)

"They're locked onto Cybertron," Raf exclaimed, "But not for long!" Again he started typing furiously.

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Again the spacebridge moved; Bumblebee whirred and chirped in delight.

"Indeed Bumblebee, this can only be Raf's doing!" Optimus agreed.

Sora smiled under his helmet, "Oh Yea! Take that Megafrog!" Bulkhead and the other humans laughed heartily.

"Nice one Sora!"

* * *

(With Donald and co.)

Raf turned to the others, "The dishes are heading back towards Cybertron! I'll just undo that again."

Goofy was now worried, "What happens when the Cons find out what we're doing?"

"It's only virtual combat," Raf reassured, "You know, like online gaming!"

Donald agreed, "Yea, what are the Cons gonna do?"

"They're probably like, a thousand miles away," Miko added on.

Jack was getting uneasy, he turned around and behind them was a large metal tentacle! It went for Raf but Jack shoved it out of the way. The boy at the computer didn't budge; he was not going to let the Decepticons win!

The tentacle slung Miko and Jack to the other side of the room; Goofy threw his shield at it but it did nothing. In a desperate attempt to fight it Donald used a Slow spell, it missed and knocked the two warriors back as well.

It turned its attention back on the young computer genius, who was still working. It lunged at him and the boy barely dodged it; Raf managed to get his flash drive out of the computer before the tentacle broke it.

Again Donald tried a Slow spell, and this time it hit! With their enemy moving at a slow speed Miko grabbed the fire ax off the wall and charged. The spell had a shorter duration on nonorganic beings, and so it wore off just in time to knock Miko back. It then picked up the ax and headed towards them.

"You handed it an ax!"

"Uh oh!"

"Not good!" But the thing didn't attack, it retracted out the door and the five followed it. They came into the control center for the base just in time to see a large dark Decepticon with no face climbing out of the roof. Miko pulled out her phone and snapped a picture, and Donald saw that the Con took a picture as well, of the kids. Then it transformed into a jet and was gone.

Raf went over to where the Con had driven the ax into a bunch of wiring; his face fell downcast, "He cut the hard-line, the dishes are locked onto Cybertron for good."

* * *

(With Sora and co.)

Suddenly the spacebridge rocked again, but this time it did not turn back. In a flash of light the spacebridge opened; it looked like a giant version of the Groundbridge.

"What'll we do now?"

Sora looked at the warship and saw Megatron holding a crystal of Dark Energon, that was bigger than himself, over his head. "At last!" The Decepticon leader threw it towards the vortex. As it flew overhead, the Keyblade wielders flew at it to knock it away but the Cons kept shooting at them until it was too late. The giant shard of Dark Energon vanished into the space time vortex.

Ven hung his head, "We… we failed."

"No!" Kairi shouted, "There's always a way!"

Riku's eyes were fixed on Megatron, "What's he doing?" The Decepticon leader stood there, with two auras glowing around him; one was the purple glow of Dark Energon and the other was the black aura of darkness. "Whether he has a human-like heart or not, darkness has invaded it."

"ARISE MY LEGION!" Megatron spread his arms out wide and grinned savagely. Ven could only picture thousands upon thousands of dead Cybertronians coming back to life, it made him shudder.

"So, how do we beat a whole planet of the undead?"

Ratchet's voice came over the comlink again, "Optimus! I'm registering a rapidly expanding mass in their spacebridge vortex, one with a peculiar energy signature."

"Dark Energon."

The Prime was thinking fast, "Ratchet, we must destroy the spacebridge! There's enough live Energon coursing through it to achieve detonation."

"But we don't have the firepower to ignite it," Lea finished.

"If I knew how the spacebridge was engineered," Ratchet said thoughtfully, "I might find a technical way of accomplishing that feat."

Sora then heard Donald's cheerful voice, "Would schematics help, Raf's got them?"

"Again, way to go Raf!"

Ratchet was still somewhat against it, "Optimus I must say, the spacebridge is our sole hope of ever returning to Cybertron. Are you certain its destruction is the only option?"

All eyes turned to Optimus, "I am afraid so."

"Then by all means, let us light our darkest hour!"

"Autobots and Keyblade wielders take your positions and follow Ratchet's lead, while I make my stand!"

They all made their way to where Ratchet directed them; Sora couldn't help but look back, he saw Optimus and Megatron were at each other's throats with their swords. Once they reached their position beneath the bridge Arcee informed Ratchet, "Ratchet, we're in position."

"Arcee, pay close attention."

She turned back to the others, "Cover my back, ok?"

"Got it!"

They all stood there weapons at the ready while the femme followed the medic's orders. They heard none of the instructions, only Arcee saying, "I see it." Then she grunted and turned a gear of some sorts, "Current reversed!"

"I'll ready the Groundbridge!"

"Look out!" The group looked up and saw Megatron flying straight towards them. None held back, this was one enemy no one wanted to battle alone. He began to shoot back; most of his shots missed but two made their mark, on Ven and Arcee.

"Ven!" Both started floating off the spacebridge, away from danger. Now the rest of the group was in trouble, the bridge began to shake once again, this time more vehemently. Underneath their feet Energon glowed and ignited, causing explosions and electrical currents of unimaginable strength to come their way.

Kairi screamed, "We need to go now!"

"Autobots," Optimus came running up, "Jump!" Off the edge of the spacebridge was the Groundbridge. As they headed towards it Bumblebee grabbed Arcee and Riku towed in Ven. Sora took one last look back and saw Megatron standing in the gateway of the spacebridge, the their own vortex closed behind him.

"Megatron is not going to make it," Lea said, "He is not going to leave, he's too stubborn."

When the bots and Keybladers came through the humans and the medic were overjoyed. But it was cut short when the injured were brought in; Bee carried in Arcee while Ven was brought in by Riku.

As the Keyblade crew gathered around Ventus, Donald cast a Cure spell and Ven began to stir. Arcee wasn't so easy. Jack went over to his guardian, looking very worried.

"We lost one this week," the medic muttered sadly, "By the Allspark don't let it be two."

The teenage boy went over and placed his hand on the femme's servo gently, she slowly opened her optics, "Jack, really? There are other motorcycles in the world."

"But, you're my first."

"What about Megatron?" Goofy asked.

"Not even he could have survived ground zero."

"Prime!" called out Agent Fowler, "I didn't get to thank you bots for the save. I owe you one… we all do." The elevator closed as Agent Fowler left.

Riku went up to the Prime, "Optimus, we're glad we could help out but it's time we moved on now."

"You shall be missed."

Kairi smiled, "Don't worry we'll come back!"

"We'll be waiting."

Miko went over to Optimus slowly and began," Um… Optimus is this…" Suddenly her cell phone lit up brightly and floated into the air.

"Who wants it?"

Lea summoned his Keyblade, "I believe it's my turn." He sealed the Keyhole and explained to the surprised bots and kids. "That means a new world is waiting."

"Then we'll be seeing you."

"Goodbye!"

The group waved and then was taken back up to the gummi ship.

* * *

(Later)

Kairi sat in her room, thinking about what had transpired, when a knock came on her door. "Who is it?"

"It's me and Riku!" The door opened to show a smiling Lea.

"What is it you two?"

Riku leaned against the wall, "Lea and I have been talking, and we will need to keep you from getting kidnapped. I think the only way to completely prevent this is by utilizing that specific set of skills you obtained during training."

"But Riku, you told me not to use them under any circumstance; that's why I didn't use them to get away from Xigbar, I didn't want to accidentally kill him like that!"

"We know Kairi," Lea placed a hand on her shoulder, "We've decided that you should use the skills in emergencies only. Kidnapping is an emergency, so have a party on whoever is stupid enough to try and take you."

"Got it guys!" Kairi noticed the Autobot insignia Keychain in Lea's hand, "Hey you got a Keychain… put it on!"

"Fine," Lea pulled the chakram Keychain off Blaze Bond and put the Autobot insignia one on. In a flash of light his sword changed; it was now a thick metal blade with a current of Energon flowing through it on one side, a current of Dark Energon on the other side, and the guard looked like a circuit-board. "It's called Energon Line!"

Riku held up a summon gem, "Look what I found." It was orange with three slash marks across it.

"Cool!"

Over the intercom came Ven's voice, "Hey guys, new world coming up!"

* * *

I'm now putting these above the devos. Well please review… I want at least 50 reviews before chapter 20. That 'Megafrog' comment of Sora's came from an episode of Transformers Armada. And the Cyber Killer Heartless was patterned after the predecons in Season 3: Beast Hunters.

Just saying, those special skills of Kairi's will be revealed in the forth and last training series story. But you will see them in action before then.

Teaser time… the gang shows up in a new world, one in which a child is in danger. With the help of some mice from the RAS can they save her? Next time in… **Devil's Bayou!**

* * *

**Stay Put**

"Where is God?" This question is one that plagues the minds of many people. "I felt God at one time, but now it's like He's not here anymore!"

Some people give their lives to God and are all for him at the beginning, in the 'spiritual high'. But when the hype ends and the trouble begins it can begin to slip away, and then you can't feel God.

"God why did you leave me?" But wait! When you were in that 'spiritual high' you talked with God every day and were in His word all the time, but when the high was over did you stop talking to God every day or stop reading his word? You're asking, "Where is God?" But God is asking, "Who moved?"

Hebrews 13:8 says, "_Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever._"

Jack and Miko went through the same thing, just not on a spiritual level. Jack blamed Miko for getting HIM stuck in the battle; but who moved… I'm not saying that what he did was wrong! He showed his 'Prime-like' characteristics in that situation. But he had no right to blame her when he got up and followed her, he moved.

If you feel like your relationship with God has gone cold step back and think. God never changes, He's always the same. Humans on the other hand, we change. So… who moved?


	12. Chapter 12: Devil's Bayou

I am so excited for this chapter. I can honestly say that as I was writing it, I began crying... actually I had to stop writing for a bit because I was crying so hard. The feels will be felt… just warning you ahead of time. Please review afterwards; remember I'm shooting for fifty reviews by chapter 20.

I would like to thank shadowmwape, JohnCenaWWEGirl, and BlazingEdge for favoriting; and BlazingEdge, shadowmwape, Mallobie, and darkhunter99 for following!

I own nothing!

* * *

**Chapter 12: Devil's Bayou **

The group landed in a dark smelly swamp. "Well this is just great!"

"Hey guys look," Goofy exclaimed, "We've shrunk!"

Ven groaned, "I hate it when this happens." They now were all the size of mice. "Everything's harder when you're smaller!"

Kairi pushed aside some reeds, "Hey guys! Look!" They peeked through the reeds and saw a small hut. Outside were five figures. One was a large tan mouse with a blue bonnet and a pink apron; another was a skinny brown mouse in a white shirt and a large gold hat that covered his eyes. Beside him was a smaller grey mouse in a red shirt and red beret, and last there was a white mouse with a purple bow around her neck and a purple ushanka.

They were watching as two huge alligators came by followed by a woman on a swamp mobile. The group came out of the reeds, "Uh, hi." The four turned about sharply.

"Who are you?" asked the white mouse.

"I'm Riku."

"I'm Sora and this is Kairi."

"My name's Goofy and this is Donald."

"This is Ventus, but he like to be called Ven, and I'm Lea got it memorized?"

The white mouse smiled, "Hello, I'm Miss Bianca from the Rescue Aid Society, and this is my co-agent Bernard. These two are Ellie Mae and Luke."

"Nice to meet you," Sora said as they came closer, "What are they doing?"

Suddenly behind them came a rustling noise, they all peeked through the grass and saw the two alligators come into the open. One of the gators was carrying a teddy bear in its mouth, while the other had a little girl that it was holding up by her dress. "Oh no!" Kairi covered her mouth, "What are they doing with her?"

"Oh it's that young 'un, she tried to run away again."

Lea was shocked, "Run away?"

"That woman is holding her prisoner."

"That's terrible!" Ven said, "We've got to follow them, and find out where they're taking her!" The Keyblade wielders and mice followed.

"Get a boat and we'll meet up at their hideout," Lea exclaimed. The heroes summoned their Keyblade gliders and zipped through the swamp after the alligators. Soon they came upon a large houseboat with all the lights on. The heroes went up to the window and saw a large man with glasses in a yellow suit over a white shirt and black tie. His was orange and reminded Riku of Larry's hair from the Three Stooges.

"Bring her right on in boys." Now they could see the little girl better; she had auburn hair in two short pigtails. She was wearing a white blouse under a blue overall dress, grey stockings, and black shoes.

"Put me down Brutus!" She yelled, and the gator dropped her. "Freaky little dragon!"

Kairi was scared, "She's so little; we have to help her!"

"We will!"

The man patted the alligators, "Nice work… good boys." But the over-grown lizards growled and snapped at him, making the man retreat atop a couch.

The little girl grabbed the teddy bear from the other alligator, "There, there Teddy, I won't let them do that to you again. Don't cry."

"Oh, Teddy, Teddy, Teddy, Teddy. Poor Teddy," Mocked the man, "All she ever thinks about is that simple bear. Now you behave or I'll let Nero and Brutus have your old teddy bear." He threatened.

"You will not!" she yelled, "Besides, I'm not scared of 'em like you are, Mr. Snoops!"

"Ah, don't you sass me!" Snoops snapped back. He looked over at the alligators, "Uh, boys, take this naughty little girl to her room."

He pushed her towards the stairs but she stopped and held her chin up high, "I can go by myself. Thank You!" She then walked up the stairs.

"Well, she looks perfectly capable of handling that man, but someone should go after and watch her."

"Lea's right," Ven nodded, "Two of us should follow her while the others wait for Bernard and Bianca. I volunteer to follow the girl."

Kairi held up her hand, "Me too."

The rest of the group climbed down to the ground and looked for the two mice; Ven and Kairi climbed upwards to where the girl was. It took longer because of their size. But before they got too far up they heard, "Where is she? Where is she?" The two Keybladers looked back through the window and saw a woman with unkempt red hair and a long sleeveless v-neck dress the same shade as her hair.

"Uh, oh, where is she…" Snoops back away nervously, "Oh, I, I sent her up to her room."

The woman was furious, "Why did you let her escape? What is your alibi this time, nitwit?"

"Well, we know whose behind all this," Ven growled.

"Nitwit?" Snoops began pulling off her boots, "Well, don't blame me, Medusa. Those leather-headed lizards of yours… they're supposed to be patrolling the island. They let her get away."

Medusa wrapped her arms around the alligators, "Ha! My precious pets. We know who caught that ungrateful little brat, don't we? Hmm?"

The others had come back with the mice by now, so Ven and Kairi left for the girl's room.

"Well, it was your brilliant idea to use the little girl for this caper." The two mice and the rest of the gang used a large pipe on the side of the boat for entry. Though they could still hear the conversation. "If you had left it to me…"

"Snoops, you're not thinking."

Donald rolled up his sleeve, "Let's bash them and rescue the girl."

"Oh, poor little Penny."

Sora looked over at Bianca, "Penny? That's the little girl's name?" The white mouse nodded.

"She's the only one small enough to squeeze down the black hole," Snoops continued.

"What 'black hole'?"

"We'll find out soon enough."

"Yes," Medusa continued, "But why can't she find my big diamond?"

Snoops shrugged, "I don't know, but it… but just look at these beauties that she brought up from the cave." The man held up a large handful of gems, pearls, and gold, enough to make Donald drool. "Oh they'll sell for a lot of cold cash." Medusa swung a cane and knocked them out of his hands, "Ow! I wish you wouldn't do that!"

"She's insane," Bianca commented, "Utterly mad."

Lea shook his head, "Greed… all she cares about is a big diamond. She doesn't care if Penny gets hurt or killed while getting it."

Riku nodded, "I hope Ven and Kairi can help her out."

"I want that diamond." Growled Medusa, "I've got to have the Devil's Eye. You didn't leave the girl down in the cave long enough."

Snoops was frantically trying to stay her wrath, "She won't take orders."

"You are too soft."

"But the water was rising, and the tide was coming in… and all she did down there was fuss about her teddy bear getting wet."

"Snoops," Medusa said in a dangerous calm, "You don't have a way with children. You must gain their confidence… make them like you."

"How would you ever manage that?" Lea whispered.

Snoops had the same idea, though he put it differently, "Yeah? How do you do that?"

"You force them to like you, IDIOT! At the next low tide… I'm going to put her down there, myself… and keep her there… until she finds it. And it is as simple as that."

Snoops finally got it, "Oh, it's as simple as that, is it? Hmm. Well, you're the boss, uh, boss." He left, as did Medusa, who was as happy as a cricket.

"We gotta get Penny out of here tonight." Bernard led the group out.

Riku nodded, "If she gets put down that hole they mentioned, she could be killed." Though the people left the gators remained and came rather close to the group. Suddenly one smelled something, strong.

"Uh oh. Bianca, they smell your perfume."

"Oh, snap!" The smell drew the reptiles right to their hiding spot. One managed to grab Bernard by his red shirt; as it drew him out Goofy jumped on it's head and bashed it with his shield. The group ran as the two giant lizards chased them around the room; they barely managed to get into a hiding spot in the pipes of a large organ. But the large reptiles were very smart and began playing the organ, causing the group to fly out the tops of the pipes.

"This sucks!" Lea yelled as one of the alligators barely managed to miss him with its jaws.

Sora shot out another pipe, "You said it!" The alligators nearly caught them every time. The music the gators caused drew Medusa into the room. With a loud burst of sound, Riku and Bernard were blown out of a pipe and into the mouth of one of the gators.

"RIKU!" Out of nowhere Medusa came into the room.

"Brutus! Nero! Stop that infernal racket! I mean now!" She banged the gator on the head, causing the two in his mouth to come out. Medusa saw them and screamed, "Snoops! Snoops, mice! Oh, kill 'um! Kill 'um!" She clambered up on a chair. Snoops grabbed a broom and began bashing the two with it. When the woman saw the full group she screamed all the more, "There's more!" Now Snoops, Nero, and Brutus came after them. The broom wasn't doing much damage, but when he tried stepping on them, they ran much faster.

Out of nowhere Medusa grabbed a shotgun and shot at the group. "SHE'S GOT A GUN!" Donald squawked as he kicked it into high gear. The shooting made everyone in the room find cover.

Finally the gun jammed, "Ooh! What is wrong with this thing? Snoops, what's wrong?" The group now made a dash for the open door.

"I don't…" the gun went off again, taking a piece of his hair off and knocking the gang off the boat.

When came up out of the water they summoned their gliders while a dragonfly brought over a leaf boat for the mice. "Are you all right, dear?"

Bianca rung out her hat, "Gosh! She tried to kill us! That… that… that terrible woman! Oh! If I was only a ten-foot mouse, I'd show her."

"If we were our normal sizes we would show her," Sora grumbled as he shook water from his hair.

Riku looked upward, "That poor girl, stuck there with that mad-woman. I hope Ven and Kairi made it to her."

* * *

(With Ven and Kairi)

The two finally made it to the top of the boat, where they could see Penny putting on her night gown. Then Medusa called out, "Penny, dear!"

"Great, more following," Ven groaned. They slipped in the window and followed her to Medusa's room.

The girl went into the room and the two Keybladers jumped in the vent and watched from there. "Did you wanna see me, ma'am?"

"Why, yes, my dear. Don't be so shy," Medusa was acting very kind now, "Now, I am going to let bygones be bygones. Do you know what would make Auntie Medusa very happy?"

Penny nodded, "Yes, you want me to find that diamond."

"That's right, dear."

"But I've tried as hard as I could, Honest!" Penny looked kind of scared.

"Of course, you have," Medusa cooed, "But we must try harder, mustn't we?"

Then Penny said something that made Ven jump, "Then please, will you take me back to the orphanage…like you promised?"

Medusa looked at her, "Penny, don't you like it here? A big beautiful boat all to yourself."

"But if I don't get back to the orphanage… I'll never get adopted."

Kairi gasped, "Oh poor thing." She looked over and saw that Ven was tearing up. "Ven?"

"Adopted?" Medusa said in false kindness, "What make you think anyone would want a homely little girl like you?"

Now Penny began to cry and so did Ven. Penny went back to her room and the two followed through the vents. "Ven, what's wrong?"

"She… she ran away from the orphanage and got mixed up in something that could hurt her. Just like… just like me."

"What?"

Ven sat down, "Why do you think I would just leave my home and family to train and never go back? I don't have a home or a family, I never have!"

"Oh Ven, I'm so sorry… but I though you lost your memories when Vanitas was formed."

Ven nodded, "Some of them came back over time, like…" He broke out in tears. "Like the memory of finding out that my parents didn't want me and just left me on the steps of an orphanage when I was two days old. All the homes that took me in but then sent me back because they didn't want me. Or me finally giving up on finding anyone who would want me, so I ran away."

Kairi wrapped her arms around Ven, tears now filling her eyes, "I am so sorry, I'm so sorry Ven." She wiped her face. "You have Sora, Mickey, and the rest of us now, and we'll find your other friends." She stood up and held out a hand, "Now, how bout we help Penny and maybe she can get the family she's always wanted."

"Kairi…" Ven took her hand and she pulled him up, "Thank you." They walked into Penny's room at about the same time that the others showed up there. The girl put a little nightcap on Teddy's head.

"Goodnight Teddy, sleep tight." She put the blanket over the bear, blew out the light, and then stopped, "Oh! We almost forgot to say our prayers." She folded the bear's arms into a praying position; she knelt and clasped her hands together. "Please bless Rufus and Teddy and all the kids at the orphanage: Jennifer, Bobby, Mary, Julie. And please let someone find my bottle. There's a message in it, because running away isn't working. Amen." She grabbed her bear as the tears returned. "Don't worry, Teddy. We'll… We'll be… all right." She sobbed as the entire group came together on her bed; Ven began to sob again.

Bianca slid down the pillow and the others followed suit, "Penny? Penny?"

She looked up at them, "Yes?"

"Penny," Sora put a hand on hers, "Don't cry we're here to help you."

The girl wiped her face, "Hi, where'd you come from?"

"We found the bottle," Bernard explained, "With your message."

Donald smiled, "We're here to rescue you."

"Did you hear that, Teddy? Our bottle worked!" Then she looked at them again, "Didn't you bring somebody big with you? Like the police?"

"Sorry kid," Lea said, "It's just us. But you'd be surprised what two mice, a tiny duck, a tiny dog, you, and five tiny people can do. Just have a little faith!"

Penny smiled happily, "That's what Rufus said, 'Faith makes things turn out right'."

"That's right; all of us working together we can get you outta here."

Bernard climbed back up her pillow, "Penny, I know it's late, but we have to escape tonight… right now."

"But I just got caught by Brutus and Nero."

Kairi went up to the window and reported, "Yeah, and they're still down there guarding the gangplank."

"Oh, those vicious monsters! They ought to be locked up in a cage."

Penny's eyes lit up, "I know! I know! Come on, I'll show you." They went outside her room and she pointed, "See there? The elevator."

"It's perfect! All we have to do is get them in there."

Kairi asked, "What can we use for bait?"

"Oh they'll eat anything."

"OH… we know," Sora assured.

Bianca had an idea, "I've got it! My perfume, remember? They'll follow the scent right into the elevator."

"And I'll slam the door!" All the talk of escape had Penny excited. "And will that make Medusa mad." She grabbed a broom and began mocking her, "Brutus! Nero! Did you let that little brat escape again? You're too soft. Wap! Wap!" With each 'wap' she pretended to bring the broom down on either the alligator's and/or Snoop's heads.

Ven, finally cracked a smile, "That's not too bad."

Penny strutted away like Medusa, as Bianca added with a smile, "That's exactly like Medusa."

The girl wasn't finished, "Track her down, boys. Bring her back."

"And by that time, we'll be long gone," Ven exclaimed.

"Wait," Riku though aloud, "What about her swamp mobile?"

Penny was ready, "We'll swipe it! I've always wanted to drive it." She began to make engine noises and pretended like she was actually driving it.

"But that thing's so noisy it could wake the dead," Kairi pointed out, "We'll need to stall them somehow."

"How about Mr. Snoop's fireworks? We'll shoot 'em off in her bedroom. That'll keep her busy."

Riku laughed, "You are one devious little girl… perfume, crocs, swamp mobiles, fireworks. It could work!"

"It's our only chance. But we're gonna need help."

Bernard was about to go when Medusa yelled, "Snoops! Snoops! Get down here!"

"Uh, what's up, Medusa?" the man tumbled down the stairs, "What's going on?"

The group moved closer so they could hear. "Oh, shut up! High tide or not…"

"I bet those two are up to something," Penny looked very frightened, "Gee, I don't wanna go down that awful black hole again."

Ven put his hand on hers, "We'll try to get you outta here before then, but if not, we'll go into the hole with you. We're here to protect you."

Penny picked him up in her hands, "Thank you, Oh, I you never told me your names!"

"I'm Sora; this is Donald, Goofy, Lea, Riku, and Kairi."

"My name is Miss. Bianca and this is Bernard."

She looked down at the blonde boy in her hands. "I'm Ventus but you can call me Ven." She smiled.

Bernard went over to the edge of the boat and shouted down to the dragonfly that had brought them here, "Evinrude? Up here." The insect flew up. "We need help. Go get Ellie Mae. And Hurry!" The insect took off and the group went back to Penny's room.

The little girl changed into her other clothes and they waited. Finally she fell asleep, as did most of the others.

Kairi lay on the top of the pillow as sleep took her. The Garden of Dreams, as she called it, was different; the colors that were usually very vibrant and happy, were dulled and melancholy. Naminè sat with her back to Kairi, and the Princess could hear sobs coming from her Nobody. "Naminè, what is it?"

The Nobody turned, her face stained with tears, "I'm sorry Kairi, its just… I feel so bad for Ven."

"You know him?"

"Yes," Naminè nodded, "When I was repairing Sora's memories, I discovered him. I could talk to him inside Sora's heart; we became friends. Actually, I've kind of missed him, but now I get to see him all the time!"

Kairi giggled, "You like him… don't you?" Her Nobody blushed. "That's what I thought! Hey, do you want me to say hi to him for you?"

"That would be great!"

"Alright I will!" Then the colors around her grew happy and vibrant again, like Kairi's mind was now at ease.

* * *

(The next morning)

Medusa came into Penny's room early and pulled her out of bed; the gang made sure to hide so they wouldn't get shot at again. "Time to go Penny, dear."

They all barely managed to get in the little girl's dress pockets before Snoops grabbed her and pulled her off. Snoops brought her to a small island with an old gnarled tree. Over one branch was a rope holding a bucket. Sora peeked out and saw below that was a deep dark hole, that only Penny was big enough to fit through.

"All right you little brat," ordered Snoops, "Now, you are gonna go down in that hole and you are gonna dig till you find me the diamond. You understand that? And no sassing me."

Medusa cut him off in her kindest voice, "Ah-ah-ah… Snoops. That is no way to speak to our little Miss Penny." The woman pulled the girl into a hug, much to Penny's distaste.

"Ok, boss. Ok." Snoops got the bucket ready.

"Now, my dear," she took Penny's face in her hands, "You're going to find the big shiny diamond for your Auntie Medusa, aren't you?"

She looked down the hole and backed away, "Teddy doesn't like it down there. He's afraid. Aren't you Teddy?"

"Aw. Tsk-tsk-tsk. Poor Teddy." She swiped the toy from her. "I'll just keep him up here with me, where he'll be safe."

"Give me back my teddy bear!" Medusa pushed Penny back with her foot. "He's mine! He's mine!" The girl nearly fell down the hole.

All kindness was gone from the woman's face, "You get down there and find the big diamond or you will never see the teddy again!"

"All right. All right." Penny stepped into the bucket and it began to lower, "I'll go."

Ven growled as Snoops laughed, "Boss, you've really got a way with kids."

"Don't worry, Teddy. I won't be gone long. I'll find her old diamond." The group climbed out of her pockets and into the bucket as they went lower into the darkness.

Penny took the lantern they had given her and stepped out of the bucket. "Oh! What a dreadful, frightening place, "Bianca stuttered.

"Yeah, it used to be a pirate's cave."

Sora gave a small smile, "And how do you know that?"

"Him," the girl pointed to a skeleton in the corner; a sword stuck out of its chest and old rags clung to what was left of him.

Lea nodded, "Ok then."

There were dozens of smaller diamonds around but they weren't what Medusa was looking for. Out of nowhere there came a deep rumbling sound and the gurgling of water. "What in Kingdom Hearts is that?"

"That's where the water comes in." further back in the cave was a huge gaping hole. "Ooh! I'm afraid to go over there."

Sora thought for a moment, "I've been around pirates and I think that might be where they hid that diamond, the Devil's Eye wasn't it?"

He and Bernard went over and looked down; Bernard backed up, "Uh, come to think of it if I was a pirate, I wouldn't hide anything back there."

"Sora look," Donald pointed across the hole, "I see something."

Bianca ran over to the side of the hole, "Let's see what it is."

"Hang on Bianca. We'll take you over there." The Keybladers summoned their gliders and they all went to the other side, leaving Penny behind with the lantern. Suddenly there was another rumbling and a stream of water shot out of the hole and hit the back side of Lea's glider; Riku barely managed to catch him before he fell.

"What are you doing down there?" Medusa called down.

"I'm looking!"

"Well look faster!"

On the other side of the hole there were and old sword and a skull, but it was too dark to see anything else. Penny raised the lantern and suddenly a bright light came from the skull. "Wow!" Multicolored lights reflected everywhere until Penny lowered the light. Bernard yelled, "Penny, hold your lantern up again." She did, and inside the skull was the biggest diamond any of them had ever seen.

"By Kingdom Hearts! That's it!"

"The Devil's Eye! Penny we found it! We found it!"

The girl ran back to the opening, "Medusa, I found it!"

The group got into the skull and tried to shove it out the eye sockets. But again the rumbling came and an even bigger stream of water came out and filled the skull halfway. But the eventually got it to the hole except it wouldn't go through.

Kairi sighed, "We can't get it out!"

"What's taking so long?" Medusa asked.

Penny answered, "It's stuck tight!"

"Stuck tight? You get that diamond or you'll never see daylight again!"

Ven heard and muttered, "What happened to the teddy bear scheme, you witch?!"

"Ven! Calm down!" Sora was amazed at his friend's anger. Then he saw Penny trying to climb around the big hole in the ground. "No, no! Back! Back, Penny!"

"Penny no! You'll fall!" Again the rumbling came and the water shot out. But the water was enough to get the girl across the hole. "Forget the diamond let's get out of here before we drown!"

The girl didn't listen; she tried prying open the skull with her hands but she wasn't strong enough. A huge wave shot out the hole and pulled Penny back. "The water's coming in!" she begged Medusa, "Please, pull me up!"

"Not until you get the diamond."

Ven looked around and saw a pirate sword, "Penny, the pirate sword. Use the sword!" She pried the skull's mouth open until the group could shove the gem out. Penny grabbed it just as another wave hit, this one putting out the lantern. The girl made it across the hole with most of the others, but Ven, Bianca, and Bernard were being sucked in by the hole.

"PENNY! PENNY HELP!" Leaving the others on the bucket the girl went after them. The whirlpool took her under but another wave shot them back out.

She put the mice and Ven in the bucket along with the Devil's Eye. "I've got it! I've got it! Hurry! Pull me up!"

Snoops hoisted them up as fast as he could. The girl hold the diamond above her head. The woman ripped it from her hands, "At last! The Devil's Eye!"

Snoops pulled Penny way high yelling, "It's worth millions!"

"Mmmm, just look at it filled with power for its owner."

Snoops was excited too, "Let me… let me look at it." Medusa held it up and the flashed him a quick glance at it. "I get… hey, that wasn't a very good look." He dropped the bucket's rope, causing Penny to fall. The bucket and rope fell back into the cave; luckily the others had gotten back in Penny's pockets. The adults didn't care about her now. "But I know there's enough there to cut it into two equal shares."

"YOU IDIOT! Cut up a perfect gem? And it's mine! It's all mine!" She laughed heartily.

"All yours?" Snoops was angry, "Well, half of it is mine, you double-crossing crook!"

While they were arguing, the alligators came and grabbed Penny again. "Put me down, Brutus!" They carried her back to the boat. The mice and Keybladers tumbled out of her pockets when they reached the boat.

Suddenly they heard, "CHARGE!" Up the gangplank came Ellie Mae, Luke, an owl in an undertaker's outfit, a rabbit in overalls with a straw hat, an tortoise in a blue hat with a cane, a mole in overalls with a miners helmet, and…

"YOUR MAJESTY?!"

"MICKEY?!"

The King of Disney Town came up the gangplank, "No time to talk now fellas, we need to save that girl!"

Bianca, Bernard, Riku, and Ven snuck over to the room where the three were; Snoops was still fuming about the diamond, "Welsher! Swindler! Chiseler!"

"Shut up, Snoops, and don't move." Medusa was in there with her former partner and Penny at gunpoint. "If either of you try to follow me you'll get blasted!"

Penny approached her but was held back by a foot, "You give me my teddy bear. You promised."

"Teddy goes with me, my dear. I've become quite attached to him." Riku cast a Vinega spell across the doorway; Medusa back up and tripped over the vines. The gun went off and the teddy bear flew out of her hands. Ven could see something bright in its back.

"Riku she put the diamond in the bear!"

Medusa yelled, "My diamond! My diamond!" Snoops ran out the door towards the bear. The greedy woman grabbed his leg and tripped him but Penny managed to run over and grab the bear. The man and woman chased her, tripping each other along the way. When Medusa tripped again the swamp animals, Donald, and Goofy began attacking her. But her gunshots soon had them running.

Then they were confronted by Brutus and Nero. In the elevator, Bianca sprayed her perfume like crazy, while she Bernard and Riku sat on a large fishhook. Riku whistled, catching the alligator's attention. The three on the hook waved in a taunting way. The reptiles came running.

The swamp dwelling rabbit had the fishing rod, ready to pull them up. "Now!" The rabbit didn't pull and the gators got closer. "Now! Now!" Right before Nero's jaws snapped on them, they were pulled up and the overgrown lizards were trapped.

Kairi, Ven, and Sora were with Penny as she tried to start the swamp mobile. "Look out!" Medusa shot at them and hit the glass window, not two inches from the little girl's head. Mickey jumped on Medusa from above and gave her a nice beating.

She pointed her gun at him, but the owl shoved a lit firecracker into the barrel and it literally blew up in her face.

Sora and Bernard were down in the engine of the swamp mobile trying to get it started. "Advance the spark!" The horn honked in Bernard's face, "Not the horn! The spark lever. Sora hold this." He handed the boy a wire as Sora also held onto a metal prong in the engine. "It's that doohickey on the steering wheel."

Ven pulled it and an electrical current shot through the engine and through Sora.

At the same time, the rest of the swamp folks and Keybladers were lighting the fireworks cache. Medusa and Snoops were pinned down by fireworks from every angle.

All had gotten down to the swamp mobile but there was another problem. "We're not getting any gas!"

"Fill 'er up, Luke." Ellie Mae's husband began dumping a little of his whiskey into the tank, "Hurry! All of it!" The vehicle started and they were off.

"Look out!" Kairi saw that Medusa had come down and grabbed onto the mooring line before they were too far away. She frantically pulled herself in and reached for the teddy bear; Kairi summoned her Keyblade and gave her a good swat on the hands.

Medusa fell back but caught the line again and this time Brutus and Nero were under her feet helping her glide along behind them. "I won't let you take my diamond!" Darkness surrounded her and the gators; it cleared to reveal a large Heartless that had once been Medusa.

The Gem Reaper Heartless had dark green scaly feet with yellow eyes and alligator mouths; it's body was red and scaly like a snakes it had pale pink arms with black batwings under them, it's face was obscured by a red hood, but it's yellow gem-like eyes shone.

"Wh…what's happened to her?"

Riku summoned his Keyblade, "Darkness has taken her heart." The Heartless inched closer and closer as they drove. "We've got to get her off!" He summoned his glider and took off as Sora leapt up onto the back.

Kairi ran down the rope between the Heartless and swamp mobile. "Let's see how she likes this! WARRIOR FORM!" Light engulfed the Princess but when it faded she wasn't in Warrior Form. She was in a green turtleneck with a loose collar that had metal blue wires winding around her torso and upper arms, blue fingerless gloves that went up to her elbows, tight blue shorts under a green flowing skirt that only went off to one side, blue knee socks, and short green combat boots. Her Keyblade was covered in light, had a more definite shape, and was under her feet like a skateboard or surfboard. In her hands was a long sword, completely made of light.

"Whoa!" Sora blushed as they flew by.

Riku swerved, making his best friend snap back into reality, "You can compliment her looks later, we've got a Heartless to destroy." The other Keyblade wielders used their gliders while Kairi floated around on her Keyblade.

"Firaga!" The spell hit the Gem Reaper in the face, causing it to roar in pain. Kairi smiled, this new form upgraded all spells to their maximum strength. "Take this! She flew by and slashed with the light blade and ripped through the Heartless's arms. "That's it! Boys, attack it's arms!"

Spell after spell, attack after attack, the Heartless finally had enough; it let go of the rope, but one person wasn't finished. Ven flew up high and dove straight down towards the Gem Reaper's head, "THIS IS FOR PENNY!" As his glider ripped through its face it began to disappear, releasing a heart into the sky.

Penny stopped the swamp mobile and waited for them to get back on. "We did it, Bianca!" Bernard shouted.

"Hooray!" There was cheering from everyone, even Penny. She picked up Ventus in her hands, "Thank you everybody!" Then she whispered, "Don't worry, you'll find your family soon."

Ven's eyes grew wide, "Thank you Penny." She hugged him as best she could without hurting him.

Suddenly Teddy lit up and lifted into the air. Sora bowed to Mickey, "Your Majesty, would you do the honors?"

"Of course!" Mickey sealed the Keyhole.

Penny looked sad, "Does that mean you have to go?"

"Sorry but it does."

"Ok… thank you so much for saving me!"

Ven smiled, "You're welcome Penny!"

"Goodbye," Bianca said.

Bernard put something into Ven's hand, "Here you can have this."

"Thanks, goodbye!"

* * *

(On the Gummi Ship)

"So Mickey, why did you come to that world?"

"Well Riku, I…"

Kairi came running in, "You guys have to see this!"

They came into the cockpit and saw a news report from the world. A reporter was saying, "And because of a courageous little girl named Penny the world's largest diamond, the Devil's Eye is now in the Smithsonian Institute." The picture changed to the orphanage door, where a man and a woman came walking out with Penny. "But what's even more important, folks this little orphan's dream has come true. Today, she's being adopted." Everyone was smiling when they heard this; Kairi turned back and saw Ventus grinning from ear to ear and with tears in his eyes. "And here she is with her new mother and father." The other children of the orphanage were singing to Penny and her new family. The picture changed again to Penny talking to the reporter. "Penny, you are a brave little girl to do what you did all by yourself."

Penny smiled, "Oh, I didn't do it all by myself. Two little mice from the Rescue Aid Society and a bunch of tiny warriors helped me."

"Mice? Rescue Aid Society? Tiny Warriors?"

"Yes! They rescued me." She asked the reporter, "Uh, could I say hello to them?" She waved at the camera, "Hello, Bianca! Hi, Bernard! Hi, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Lea, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey! Hello, Ven!"

The reporter was confused, "You can talk to these little mice and warriors?"

"All the time. They can talk like anybody. Didn't you know that?" The group all laughed.

"Well, I didn't," the reporter stuttered, "But I do now, Penny." The TV screen shut off.

"Good for her!"

Goofy laughed, "I'm so glad she got some parents now!"

"Yea," Ven mumbled, "She can live out both her dream, and mine." Ventus took out his Keyblade, which now had the Keychain from Bernard on it. It had a guard that was diamond shaped and colored, its shaft was a pirate sword, the blade itself was a large diamond, and it's Keychain was a teddy bear. "It's called Devil's Eye."

Kairi looked back at him sadly; suddenly she remembered something. "Ven." She went over and whispered, "Naminè says hi."

The boy's face turned pink and he smiled again. Sora saw this and was very confused. "Kairi, what did you tell him?"

"Sora… I just told him that Naminè says hi. Stop being silly."

Mickey cleared his throat, "I'm sorry to have to break this up but I've been searching for you guys for a while. You are needed back in Radiant Garden, something's going on there."

"Alright then," Riku sat down in the drivers seat, "Next stop Radiant Garden!"

* * *

Oh, the feels! Tell me what you though of Ven's back-story… I know it's sad. Ok and to warn you ahead of time starting next chapter, this story will be a Final Fantasy mad-house in places. Please review!

Now for the trailer… The gang returns to Radiant Garden only to find it full of new faces. One face appears that is familiar to some of the gang, but does this person bring help or hurt. Next time in… **Radiant Garden!**

* * *

**Rescue Me**

As usual the Keyblade crew ended up in the right place at the right time. This time is was a perfect opportunity to save a little girl in trouble. It seems that this always happens to them, but is it a coincidence, or not?

God can sometimes put in in the right place at the right time, and we can be the rescuers. In Acts 22 and 23, the Apostle Paul was arrested by Roman troops. Not for doing anything wrong, he had been preaching when the Jews rioted and tried to tear him to bits. This drew the Romans to them and Paul was arrested. The Romans found him guilty of nothing and were going to move him to another location, but the Jews plotted to kill Paul along the way.

Paul's life was saved by his nephew. He happened to be in the area and overheard the Jews plot. He went and warned the Romans and they were able to keep his uncle safe from harm.

Sometimes God can put us in situations that can allow us to be the rescuers for someone else.


	13. Chapter 13: Radiant Garden

Hi! Sorry about the delay… writer's block stinks. This is a rather short chapter with a lot of intros this chapter was kind of hard for me to put story in, but the others will be better. You will see people from a couple different Final Fantasy games and a Final Fantasy movie. sorry about the mess up fixed it!

I would like to thank shadowmaster and Antex-The Legendary Zoroark for favoriting. And A-Haley358 for following.

I own nothing!

* * *

**Chapter 13: Radiant Garden**

The gang landed in the marketplace and were surprised to find that the usually peaceful place was now a hub of activity. Crates were all over the place, and people were moving them all about.

In the center sat a man in a wheelchair. He had blonde hair that swept over to the left side of his face; on that same side he had a bandage around his head and over his left eye. His neck was bandaged as well. He wore a white collared shirt, over that was a black vest , with a cream colored coat over that, his loose pants were cream as well, and his shoes were black.

Lea looked at him and then at the logo on the side of a crate. "Great," he growled, "Shinra."

"What's Shinra?"

Lea glared at the man, "It's a trouble-making electrical company. It is run by that man there… Rufus Shinra. He was one of the men who completely backed up Xehanort in all his doings. I thought they disbanded after this world was lost to darkness."

"We can ask around and figure it out," Riku shrugged.

Lea shrugged and looked away. "Huh! It can't be!" He took off running. And rounded a bend out of sight.

"Lea! Uh… not again!" They came around the corner they saw Lea talking of a woman who wasn't Sera. She was slim with brown eyes and auburn hair that was streaked with grey, her face showed signs of ageing. She was dressed in a suit like the ones on MIB, as Sora though. They two were talking excitedly and the woman looked like she was about to cry.

Kairi approached them, "Uh Lea, mind introducing us?"

"Oh hello," the woman smiled, "You must be one of those Keyblade wielders."

"Yes ma'am, so are most of us."

"Large crowd."

Lea coughed, "Well, this is Kairi, Riku, Sora, Ven, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey." The others were surprised that he didn't say 'got it memorized' after the introductions.

"My name is Cissnei," the woman smiled, "nice to meet all of you."

Ven cocked his head, "So how do you know each other?"

"Um… well," the pyro stammered, "She's my… my mother."

"YOUR MOTHER!"

"Yes, I do have one you know!"

Cissnei laughed, "All these years I've been worried about you, I should have remembered what my son was like."

"So Mom, where have you been for the last few years?"

"It's a long story," she sat down, "When this world fell into darkness I and a few of the other Turks went around to other worlds searching for the remnants of Radiant Garden's citizens. We found many and when we found out that this world had been restored we brought them all home."

"Who's all here?" Donald asked.

Cissnei pulled a list out of her pocket, "I brought back a small company that consisted of two warriors, a Shinra class 3 SOLDIER, a young woman, and a little boy.

Goofy scratched his head, "But why is Shinra moving back in now?"

"We… we feel like we have a lot to atone for. We did give Xehanort the resources and power he needed to plunge this world into darkness. We hope to do better now." She looked away, sadly. "Things seem to be turning around… if only he were here."

Lea's eyes grew hard, "We don't need him!"

Cissnei turned away from her angered son, "You better go see Rufus; he had something to talk to you about." Without a word the pyro turned back towards the marketplace, and the others followed.

Rufus noticed them coming towards him, "Ah, if it isn't the guardians of light. I cannot believe Cissnei's son is one of them!"

"Yea, yuck it up Rufus," Lea growled.

Kairi slapped him on the back of the head, "Forgive him sir, he's kind of eccentric. We were told that you wanted to see us."

"Yes," Rufus nodded, "There…" A scream rang out from the castle.

Sora turned away, "Sorry Sir, but we've got to help; we'll be back in a few minutes."

They ran up to the castle and saw two people surrounded by Soldier, Shadow, Neoshadow, and Yellow Opera Heartless. One was a woman with bright green eyes that were partially hidden by glasses and brown hair that was pulled into a high ponytail with bangs that hung around her face. She was dressed in the same outfit that Even and Ienzo wore.

Beside her was a man in the same outfit, except his was dirty, with blonde hair in a crew-cut, a blonde goatee, on his forehead were goggles, and he was wearing dog tags.

"Hang on!" Lea flung his chakram and wiped out a group of Shadows. It didn't take too long to wipe them all out.

"Cid, what are you doing in Even's clothes?"

The man gave a smirk, "Didn't you hear I'm the head gummi ship engineer of Radiant Garden. That means I live in the castle, work in the best garages, and get to wear these fancy duds." The woman laughed. "Oh guys, this is Shera. She's my assistant and fiancé."

Sora gave them his trademark grin, "Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Shera smiled, "But we're not the only castle romance. Oh, speaking of which…"

Dilan, Aeleus, and two other people dressed in the same clothes as them, came running up. One of the others was a largely built man with cold eyes and a scowl on his face. On his head was a metal pointed hat with blue, white, and blue layers of metal and a feather stuck out one side.

The other stranger was a woman with shoulder-length brown hair that was curled at the bottom, her eyes were brown but one was covered by a white eye patch.

"What's going on?"

"Steiner, it's all under control," Cid pointed out.

The man, Steiner, glared at Sora, "Not if some troublemaking kids are running around!"

"Trouble making kids?" growled Sora as he got in the Steiner's face, "Say that again Rusty, I dare you."

The woman pulled him back as Riku pulled back Sora. "I'm sorry. He has issues with young people and we don't exactly know everyone yet, so he's very suspicious. I'm Beatrix, and you've met my partner and fiancé, Adelbert Steiner."

They shook hands with them, "Nice to meet you two. I'm Riku and this is Sora, Kairi, Lea, Donald, Goofy, Ven, and Mickey."

Suddenly another figure came up from the marketplace, "Are you the warriors of light?"

"Yes."

The man panted, "President Shinra was wondering where you were."

"Who are you?"

"I'm Kunsel." The man was in a dark maroon sleeveless turtleneck, with black guards over his shoulders, black straps that attacked to his extremely thick black belt, dark maroon army pants, black combat boots, and on his head was a helmet that looked like a medieval knights helmet only it didn't cover the mouth.

Riku apologized, "Sorry about that, just doing our job."

"We're coming, tell your boss not to get his bandages in a twist," Lea rolled his eyes. They followed the class 3 SOLDIER back to the marketplace, where Rufus was waiting.

"Sorry about the delay, duty called," Ven smirked.

Rufus smiled, "That's fine. I understand that you have priorities but one of them coincides with my request. During our recent surveillance sweeps we have spotted a man in a black coat roaming around the Great Maw. I was hoping you would take care of him."

"You can count on us Mr. Shinra," Mickey said.

(Outside the City)

The group made their way along to the Crystal Fissure; then Goofy heard a noise. "Hey, what's that?"

"Huh! Whose there?" A boy of about eight came out from behind a crystal. He had light brown windswept hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a black hoodie, dark grey pants, and black shoes. "Who are you?"

"I'm Sora; this is Donald, Goofy, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Lea, and Ventus."

"Call me Ven."

The boy smiled, "Hi! My name's…"

"Denzel!" From behind the Keybladers came a man dressed almost exactly like Kunsel except that his outfit was black not maroon and he had no helmet. He had one sleeve held on by a silver wolf button; his blonde hair was spiky, spikier than Sora's and Ven's but not as spiky as Lea's."

Sora smiled, "Hey Cloud, how have you been?"

"I've been well," Cloud replied, "Sorry; I can't talk now I need to get Denzel back home. Tifa has dinner waiting for him."

The boy ran up to the ex-SOLDIER, "Let's go!"

"You go on ahead, I'll catch up." As the boy left, the blonde looked at the confused faces of Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "Denzel is an orphan that Cissnei brought back from another world. He's been living with me and Tifa until somebody adopts him. If no one adopts him, I'm thinking of doing it myself."

Kairi smiled, "He seems like a real nice kid."

"He really is; sorry I can't talk more but Tifa is waiting for us to get back. I will talk to you later." He turned away from them and went after the little boy.

Donald waved a wing, "See you later Cloud!"

The group walked out into the Great Maw; Lea was still scowling after talking to Rufus. "Lea, what in Kingdom Hearts is the matter?" Ven questioned, "Ever since you mother mentioned that guy you have been sulking about."

"Coming home and finally finding my mother again... things seemed pretty good. Until she had to bring HIM up."

"Who?"

"Do I look like I want to talk about it further?"

"Sorry…" Ven stopped and pointed up, "There he is!" Up on a ridge stood a man in a black coat with his hood down; the man's silver hair hung part way down his back. As the man turned towards them, Sora recognized him as the Ansem from the portrait in the castle study.

He smiled at them, "Well, took you long enough. I would've thought at least Ven would have dashed in here earlier. You've gotten slow my old friend." Ven looked at him in confusion. "You really don't know who I am, do you? I saved your life from our old teacher, and you don't remember me at all."

"TERRA?" Ven's eyes grew huge, "Is that… you?"

"No! It can't be!" The King of Disney Town was equally surprised.

Riku looked at him and suddenly saw the guy who had given him the power of the Keyblade. "So that's why… when I looked at Ansem I saw him. Ansem was his Heartless. What has Xehanort done to you?"

"You figured it out, every Xehanort you have fought so far, was an extension of me. I am Terra no more; your friend is gone forever and all that is left is me." Beside him appeared Ansem and Xemnas. "I go by the name Xigbar gave me… Terranort! Now, hand over the Princess."

Sora stepped in front of Kairi defensively and the entire group drew their weapons. "You'll just have to come and take her!"

The Princess looked over at Riku and mouthed, "Now?"

"Not yet, we can keep you safe."

Terranort summoned a hoard of Nobodies and Heartless around them. Sora pulled a summon gem out of his pocket. "AQUA LAD!" A young man appeared with dark skin, white eyes, and close cut blonde hair. There were thick black tattoos down both his arms and his neck had gills on them along with two fins on the backs of his legs. He was wearing a sleeveless red shirt with black accents, blue diving pants, a black belt with a strange A on it.

He pulled two metal rods off his back and they lit up blue along with the tattoos, forming swords of water, "Let's finish this!" The two leapt into the fray, water swords and Keyblade flashing left and right.

Riku caught on and pulled out his gem from Cyber Cite. "WOLVERINE!" A muscular man in an orange and black costume appeared. His suit was orange on top but it turned black about mid-chest, and his belt was orange with a red X as the belt buckle. His boots were orange with black straps and knee guards, over his face was an orange mask with black prongs that went over his eyes and off to the sides, and his gloves were orange with black straps. He held up his fists and three metal blades came out of his knuckles.

"It's over bub!" The claws ripped and shredded beside Riku's blade.

Xemnas looked over at his Somebody, "I know you won't let it be this easy."

"Of course not," Terranort smirked, "Just giving them the illusion of victory."

The summons went back to their own worlds and the Heartless and Nobodies vanished.

"Very good, but I'm still taking the Princess, while the rest of you will wait in the Realm of Darkness forever!" Ansem released the giant Heartless from himself. The three Xehanort copies became surrounded in an aura of darkness; then they launched the dark matter towards the heroes.

Ven yelled, "Terra don't!" But it was too late, the darkness flew towards them and there was no way to stop it.

Out of nowhere Lea jumped in the way of the others, absorbing all the darkness into himself. "LEA DON'T!" Riku yelled but it was futile; the pyro had fallen to his knees and was shaking violently. "Lea, what in Kingdom Hearts were you thinking?!"

"I… Th…thought…since… I could… still… activate… dark corridors… I could absorb… and release… the darkness without… anyone… getting hurt." Darkness was now curling around him unceasingly. "I guess… I should've though… thought it through first."

Terranort watched them gather around the pyro, "They'll go, one way or the other. If one has to die, so be it." He, his Heartless, and his Nobody left, knowing the most likely outcome of this situation.

"Guys…" Lea's eyes glowed yellow, "I can't contain it! Get away from me! AHHHHHHH!" A giant dark corridor engulfed all of them and the last thing any of them knew was darkness.

Yea this is a short chapter, and so will the next one. Tell me what you thought of who I brought in! Just saying, the other 'Final Fantasy madhouse' chapters will be longer and have more story than this one, but I needed to do some intros.

For those of you who do not know Kunsel and Cissnei are from FF Crisis Core, Shera and Rufus Shinra are from FF7, Denzel is from FF Advent Children, and Beatrix and Steiner are from FF9.

Teaser time! The group ends up in a dark world with no escape in sight. But when they find two old friends there, will light dawn on them? Next time in… **Realm of Darkness!**

**Coming Back**

The people of Radiant Garden are returning home. Their world was gone but now that it has returned they too are returning in hopes for a second chance at life. Even those who have done harm are coming back; like the former Organization and Shinra. Even they want a second chance to maybe do better.

There is a story like this in the bible. Jesus tells this parable in Luke 15: 11-23…

_"Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons._

_"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living._

_After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need._

_So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs._

_He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything._

_"When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!_

_I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you._

_I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.'_

_So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him._

_"The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'_

_"But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet._

_Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate._

_For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate._

_"Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing._

_So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on._

_'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.'_

_"The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him._

_But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends._

_But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!'_

_"'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours._

_But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'"_

God is like the father in this parable. He will give you a second chance no matter what you've done. The former Organization and Shinra might just become something great with this new start; it depends on how they use this chance. It's the same with us.

So like the refugees of Radiant Garden returning home; if you return to God he will always receive you with open arms and give you a second chance.


	14. Chapter 14: Realm of Darkness

Hey guys! WE MADE IT TO 50 REVIEWS BY CHAPTER 13 YAHOO! Now could we try to hit 100 before this story is over, thanks!

Hey FYI, I might not be able to check reviews or read stories (if I'm keeping up with yours) for the next week. I will be on vacation and if I get on the web it'll be a serious stroke of luck. Still... review! Hey I put up a new Training Series story so check it out, and please review on it too. Hey I put up a poll on my bio, so please vote on it!

I would like to thank redxkiller45 and anarichter999 for favoriting this story! Also thank you Vospader21 for following my story.

I do not own anything!

**Chapter 14: Realm of Darkness**

* * *

Sora's mind wandered through darkness, when suddenly an image of Roxas appeared before him. The Nobody smiled, "Hello Sora."

"Hi Roxas! What's up?"

"You have a special kind of power," Roxas answered in almost a trance, "If you see the heart in something it becomes real."

"What in Kingdom Hearts are you talking about?" The Nobody vanished. "Hey wait! What did you mean? Roxas!"

Sora's eyes fluttered open to reveal darkness. Around him on the dark ground were the others, only Riku was awake. The silverette was leaning over Lea's body. "Riku, is he alright?"

"Yea, he was able to channel the darkness into a large dark corridor. It sent us here, to the Realm of Darkness." Riku looked up at his best friend, "Didn't think you'd see this place again; am I right?" Sora nodded and went over to Kairi's unconscious form. "She's fine, Sora. I checked them all, everyone's ok."

Ven was the next to wake up, followed by Kairi a few seconds later. The DisneyCastle bunch woke up next, one after the other. Lea finally opened his eyes but didn't sit up. "Lea, you ok?"

"I don't want to get up… my body feels like it's on fire right now."

Mickey came over to him, "You shouldn't have tried to absorb all that darkness. We would've been alright."

With Riku and Ven's help, the pyro was able to sit up. "Of all the places to get us to, I brought us here… the Realm of Darkness."

"The Realm of Darkness!" Ven's head shot up, "Aqua's here!"

"What?"

"We've got to find her!" Ven jumped up and began to run off; Riku caught him by his collar. "Hey! Let me go!"

The Keyblade Master gave a small smile, "Calm down… you're worse than Sora sometimes." Ven relaxed. "That's better, we'll find Aqua, don't worry. First we need to get our bearing and focus on protecting Kairi."

"I don't need protection," the Princess argued.

"Oh yes you do," Lea shot back, "You're a Princess of Heart and this is the Realm of Darkness. Your pure light will draw almost every Heartless to us; they'll try to destroy your light by any possible way." Sora grabbed her hand protectively.

Goofy was thinking, "Where would we find Aqua?"

"There is one place that you will always end up at if you travel this world long enough," the King of Disney Castle replied, "Riku and Lea know where I'm talking about."

"The lonely shores."

Lea agreed, "If she's anywhere by now, she's there."

Ven was tapping his foot urgently, "Can we go… she has waited thirteen years to get out of here, we shouldn't make her wait any longer."

"Alright, let's go." Riku helped Lea to his feet and the band walked through the black land.

There was absolutely no sound except for the soft plodding of their feet. No one spoke, for there was really nothing to say. Kairi stood close to Sora, Riku and Lea's warning on her mind. She turned around and, to her shock, there was someone following them. It was a figure in a black coat, and it was coming closer.

"Sora…" The boy turned and spotted him as well. "What'll we do?"

"Just keep walking."

Behind them the figure stopped and watched them round a corner. Around the corner the group halted as a familiar figure rose up before them. "Oh come-on," Lea moaned, "This stupid Heartless again." They looked up at the Darkside Heartless, a familiar sight to nearly all of them.

"Take it down!" They all summoned their Keyblades and jumped into action. Kairi jumped onto it's arm and ran upwards to its head; Mickey joined her up there, and the two stabbed the Heartless in the face multiple times.

The Princess jumped off as Riku slammed the Darkside backwards, sending it toppling over a cliff. As they watched it fall Kairi's arm was grabbed; she turned and saw the cloaked figure she had seen earlier. The boys turned and saw him grabbing her arm, but before they could react, Kairi had already done so. She grabbed the figure's wrist, twisted it so he let go of her, and then flipped him over her shoulder and off the cliff.

Everyone but Lea and Riku stared at her in utter shock. Without a word she walked past them. As she passed the pyro and the wielder of Darkness she whispered, "He was stupid enough…" They both chuckled at this.

They kept walking, but Sora was still amazed at Kairi's quick and decisive movements, and how calm she was. She had just flipped a man off a cliff, and he could tell that she was calm as ever, possibly even calmer. "Something happened… but what?"

"Hey look!" Ven pointed. From their vantage point they could see the lonely shores. From there they could see two figures sitting there. "That must be Aqua down there!"

He dashed off but Lea quickly grabbed him by the shirt collar. "Calm down, kiddo. If we rush down there we might run right into a nest of Heartless."

"Fine…" They slowly walked down towards the shore; Ven was nearly vibrating with excitement.

As they came around a bend, they spotted a black cloaked figure. "That can't be!"

"It is!" the figure said in a warped voice, "I was not expecting the Princess to throw me off a cliff. That's a new side we'll have to keep an eye on."

Kairi smirked at him as they all summoned their weapons. "Better keep an eye on the rest of us too."

"This shouldn't take long," he chuckled. To their utter surprise, he summoned Riku's former weapon, Soul Eater. "Surprised? Maybe before you all die I'll tell you who I am." He then launched a dark aura at them. The group jumped away just in time; but the figure came at them again.

He slammed Riku in the back with a maniacal laugh, and he felt a somewhat familiar darkness. He jumped up and soon Way to Dawn pressed against Soul Eater. "Who are you? Why do you have that weapon?"

"Maybe I'll tell you… right before you die!" The figure jumped back and unleashed a dark Fiagara. Riku cast Reflega and sent it back, but the figure dodged the Hero of Darkness's attack. "Thanks for the help, Riku!"

When the figure moved, Riku's eyes grew wide in shock; his attack headed straight for Kairi. "LOOK OUT!" The Princess turned around only to see Sora leap in the way of the attack. "NO SORA!"

"See what you've done Riku. Your friends are getting hurt and it's all because of you."

"NO!" Mickey attacked the figure, "You and the rest of Xehanort's men are behind this!"

"THAT'S RIGHT!" A girl's voice called out from behind the figure. The figure turned and a Keyblade struck him in the face. As the figure fell, the blade stuck into the ground; Mickey gasped. The Keyblade had a long thin dark gray shaft with an E shaped blade; the handle was square with black rivets along its silver color, and the guard matched the handle except for the bronze rods holding it together along the top and sides. The Keychain was the heart symbol, or 'Mastery' symbol that Ventus wore.

Ven saw it and yelled, "Master Eraqus's blade!"

"You?" the figure in the coat turned to see a figure standing in the shadows. "I thought you were gone forever!"

"Don't bet on it!" Out from the shadows stepped the girl from Castle Oblivion, the one in the sky blue coat. She picked up Master Seeker and turned on the figure.

"This was getting boring anyway." He disappeared in a dark corridor, leaving the group alone with the girl.

Ven slowly walked up to her, "Aqua… is that you?"

The girl took off her hood to reveal her short-cut cerulean hair and blue eyes. "Hello Ventus!"

"AQUA!" He ran to her and they embraced. "You're alright!"

A tear of joy ran down her smiling face as she said, "Yes Ven, I'm so happy to see you safe again." She let Ven go and looked up to see the king of DisneyTown standing there smiling. "Mickey! Thank you, for helping Ven." She then looked over at the three Destiny Islanders and smiled brightly. "Last time I saw you three you were little, about four or five years old."

It took a moment but Sora suddenly remembered her, "You! I remember you! I saw you in the dream worlds and when I was four years old!"

"And I remember you… Sora, Riku, and Kairi. If I remember right though, Kairi was from a different world than you two; I met her in RadiantGarden."

Kairi thought for a moment, "I'm sorry, I don't remember my life in RadiantGarden. I lost my memories when I arrived on the islands."

"I should have known," Aqua giggled, "That spell is what brought you to the islands."

"What spell?"

The bluette went over and touched Kairi's pendant. "You don't remember, but you still wear that necklace. When we first met I sensed your pure light and placed a spell on you by this pendant. The spell would lead your light to the light of another when you were in danger." She glanced over at Sora, "It did its work right." This made them both blush. "We can discuss this more later; right now there is someone who you might want to see." She walked towards the beach and the others followed; soon they saw a tall figure in a black coat sitting there.

He stood and turned to them, "I was not expecting to see you this soon."

"Huh!" Riku recognized that voice instantly, "Ansem the Wise!" The figure took off his hood to reveal a man with bright orange eyes, and blonde hair that went down into the hood.

"Hello to you too; Aqua and I have been expecting you for some time." His eyes drifted over to Lea, "Mr. Fahrenheit… this is a surprise. I would've expected to see you avoiding all contact with the dark realm."

The pyro rolled his eyes, "Great… first Rufus Shinra and now you. Can this day get any worse?"

"Nice to see you again too."

"I'm just joking," Lea smirked, "Ansem… it's good to see you again. I never expected to find you here, or anywhere for that matter."

Ansem smiled, "It's good to see all of you here as well, except I wish here wasn't the Realm of Darkness. Now I think we should find a way out of here; Riku and Sora, you escaped once I know, how?"

"Sora's light… it allowed us to escape. His light focused on Kairi and we were able to get back to the islands," Riku told them.

Sora's face grew red as he said, "Well that won't work this time… someone else's light will have to do it. This time though, we probably need to get to RadiantGarden. But, who has someone in that world that their light can reach out to?"

"Well… what about Lea?" Ven looked over at the pyro, "His mother's there… not to mention Sera."

This got him a glare, "Um Ven, I'm not exactly the most light filled person."

"It's our only chance, Lea please try." Donald exclaimed.

"Fine, I'll try." He closed his eyes and though about his mom. It had been years since he had last seen her, and though he may not act like it, he missed her terribly. She had raised him by herself since he was little. Her smiling face filled his mind.

He remembered something she had told him when he was younger, _"Lea… no matter what you do, whether it be good or bad, you'll always have a safe place with me."_

"Mom…"

Then his thoughts drifted over to Sera. He remembered one of the times that he came back to RadiantGarden to see her. They were sitting on the roof of a castle tower; Sera reached over and adjusted his scarf, _"It's too bad that you have to go again. Lea, always remember that I'll be here waiting for you; no matter how far or long you're gone, I'll always be waiting." _

"Oh… Sera…" Before them a door of light opened up.

Ansem smiled at the pyro, "Well done Lea! Let's go home."

They walked through the door and, unlike last time, they were on the ground and in the castle postern. "I cannot believe that worked."

Donald smirked at Riku, "Oh ye of little faith."

"Oh my!" Just coming up from the labs was Cissnei, "What… how? Ansem the Wise! How did you get here?"

"Cissnei, you have your son to thank for that." All eyes turned to Lea, who grinned sheepishly. "I will explain later, right now I need to go down to the lab area. There is something that belongs to Aqua down there."

This surprised the bluette, "What?"

"Well is that armor and Keyblade we found some years ago yours or not?" Ansem cocked his head in question.

She smiled, "It is."

"Shall we then?"

They walked down through the castle hallways silently until Ven suddenly remembered something. "Hey Aqua, when Sora and I saw you in Castle Oblivion you had your Keyblade Stormfall; but you have Master Keeper with you not Stormfall."

"I didn't want to reveal that I had Master Eraqus's blade if someone was watching us. I used up my extra energy to show you Stormfall."

"Oh."

They entered Ansem's study where Dilan, Aeleus, Ienzo, and Even were working. The former Xaldin noticed them first, "MASTER ANSEM!" The other three apprentices looked up in shock. There was a stunned silence until Dilan again spoke, "It's… it's good to see you alive and well sir. Please accept our sincerest apologies about joining Xehanort."

"You are forgiven, I know you weren't yourselves." He looked down at himself. "Now that I'm home again I should probably get rid of this infernal coat." He pulled it off to reveal an outfit nearly identical to the ones Even and Ienzo were wearing. Ansem then opened the top drawer of his desk, pulled out a red scarf, and wrapped it around his neck so that part of it hung down his back like a short cape.

Ienzo cracked a small smile, "Now you look like yourself sir."

"Thank you Ienzo. Now we need to make a stop by the Chamber of Repose and retrieve the armor and Keyblade." He led them down to the former Heartless maker, which was now under construction and being reverted into another gummi hanger. Ansem held out his hand and a large section of the floor moved to reveal a stairway. The stairs spiraled downward till they were out of sight.

Sora clutched his stomach, "Just looking down that far makes me wanna hurl."

"That makes two of us." Ven put a hand over his mouth.

"It's a long walk," Ansem turned to the bluette, "Miss Aqua, you might want to take off the coat. You'll probably be more comfortable in your ordinary clothes."

"Good idea." Shedding the coat, the others got a better look at her. She was wearing a navy sleeveless, skin-tight, turtleneck; over her lower torso was a black corset that laced up on both sides and over her upper torso were two pink crossing straps with the Mastery symbol in the middle. Her gray sleeves, that started in the middle of her upper arms, had armor on them that was blue and silver, and on her hands were darker gray fingerless gloves. Her skin-tight black shorts went to the middle of her thighs and her black socks went up above her knees; her silver armored boots were accented with black. She had a white cloth wrapped around her waist and two blue pieces hung off to the sides. "Much better."

"Oh Aqua," Kairi smiled, "You look so pretty!"

This made the older girl blush, "Thank you Kairi; you know… you look very lovely too."

"Girls…" Lea sighed. He turned and saw that now both girls were glaring at him. "My bad… um, why don't we get walking?" He took off down the stairs at a rapid pace.

The others followed slower, laughing at him as they walked. The walk was very long and tiring; Aqua was glad she had taken off her coat before they began the trek.

Finally they reached the bottom, but it looked like someone wanted to keep them out. The floor was crisscrossed with lasers, as was the entire area around the door. "Ok," Goofy gulped, "How do we get through there? Can we get through there?"

Riku grabbed Donald's hat and threw it into the lasers. The duck squawked as his hat was incinerated. "WWAAKKK! WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR YOU BIG PALOOKA!?"

"Didn't you want to know if we could get through there?" The duck continued to glared daggers at him.

Kairi suddenly remembered something; she reached into her left boot and pulled out a summon gem she had picked up after flipping that guy over the cliff. The round gem was a deep blue color with a black pointed face with pointed ears, there were two blue triangles for eyes, and the bottom part was a gray color with an upside down black triangle. "I might have someone who can help with this." She held up the gem and yelled, "SLY COOPER!"

In a flash of light a raccoon, a little shorter than Ventus, appeared. He had brown eyes that were surrounded by a black mask; on his head was a blue cap. He was wearing a quarter-sleeved blue shirt with a gold turtle-necked collar; around his waist was a gold belt with a black symbol that had been on the gem. His gloves were blue with gold around the ends, on his upper left leg was a red strap that held a red bag, on his feet were blue boots, and in his hand was a cane with a golden hook on the end. "Need some help?"

"Yea," Kairi pointed to the door, "We need to get in there, and I think I can see a control panel beside the door. You think you could get over there?"

He looked from under the brim of his cap at the web of lasers. "Shouldn't be a problem." He jumped through the first set of lasers, and, using some ledges that jutted out from the wall, climbed upwards and leapt over the second set. Then, making good use of a hook that hung from the ceiling swung over the last set and drove his cane into the control box; the lasers vanished leaving the walkway open. Sly walked back over with a smile. "Any time you need the help of a thief, give me a call!" Then he vanished.

"That was convenient."

"Sure was," Sora looked over at his girlfriend, "Where did you find that summon?"

She walked over to the door, turned back to him, and smiled, "In the Realm of Darkness." The group walked into the room. It was silver with chains and Nobody symbols around the room; in the center was a chair and lying before the chair was the Keyblade that they had seen Aqua using in Castle Oblivion and a pile of blue and silver armor.

Aqua walked up to the pile and held out her hand; Stormfall appeared her hand and the armor collected into an orb of light and flew into the armor on her left shoulder. "Ansem, thank you for keeping this for me."

"You're welcome Aqua. I owe you wielders of the Keyblade so much, we all do. Now you'd best be on your way; Xehanort won't wait on you to rest up. We can get you all the supplies you need."

Riku bowed his head respectfully, "Thank you Ansem." Lea began walking up the stairs, leaving the rest behind. "Where are you going hot-head?"

"I have a girlfriend to go see." He turned away, "And I need to introduce her to my Mom."

Ansem cocked an eyebrow as he walked away. "He has a girlfriend?"

"Yep!" Goofy smiled, "It's that girl we mentioned, Sera."

"How interesting."

* * *

(Later in the Gummi Hanger)

Light Streakier was prepped for takeoff. Riku, Sora, and Ven were loading the last of the supplies while Lea said his farewells to his mother and girlfriend. "Really Lea…" Sora groaned as he lifted a large crate of food into the ship, "You're the oldest, you should be helping."

"Oh chill out Sora," Aqua said from the kitchen.

Kairi agreed, "He doesn't know how long it'll be till he sees them, and he just found his mom and now he has to leave again."

Lea was close enough to hear them but he wasn't paying attention. "I'll come back soon, I promise. Mom, please take care of Sera; Sera, please help my mom settle back in."

"Don't worry Lea," Cissnei hugged her son, "I'm sure she and I will be wonderful friends by the time you come back."

"Yes, and really worry Lea, I'll help her settle in." She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "We'll be waiting."

As he turned back towards the ship his mother grabbed his arm, "Lea, I know you are angry with him, but if you happen to find him please send him home."

"Fine," the pyro looked at the ground, "I'll do it… but only for you. Don't expect me to be happy about it." Cissnei smiled and nodded slowly. Lea smiled and walked onto the ship; the guys had just finished loading. "So… ya'll ready to go?"

"Yep!"

"Aqua, you think you're ready to get back into this thing?"

She smiled at Ven, "Of course I'm ready! I hope that we can help free Terra from Xehanort." Her eyes fell downcast. "I really thought that I freed him when I saved him from the Realm of Darkness so many years ago." A single tear ran down her cheek as thoughts of that battle filled her mind.

"Aqua…" The bluette felt a hand touch her arm lightly; Kairi had come up beside her, "You ok?"

A small smile spread across the older girl's face. "Yes, I'm fine." Looking at Kairi, she could remember the little girl she saved from the Unversed; now here she was, a young woman, a young Keyblade wielder. "Kairi, if it would be ok I would like to help you along with training, magic, or just anything."

"Thank you Aqua, I would like that. Lea's already like a big brother, and now I can have a big sister too!"

"Alright!"

"Let's go!"

"Ok then," Riku plopped down into the drivers seat. He started the engine, "Let's get moving!" The ship hummed to life and then blasted out of the hanger. Things seemed a little brighter now that Aqua was with them.

* * *

AQUA'S BACK! Now, the fun really begins. Please review, I want to know you're thoughts on the chapter. And who do you think that mysterious character was who attacked them?

Teaser time… The group lands on a new world full of peace-loving woodlanders who are under attack by an evil rat and his hoard of vermin. Can the Keybladers help them? Next time in **Mossflower!**

* * *

Out of the Darkness

Thirteen years! That is a freakishly long time to wait for something… though I've seen longer (Doctor Who: try waiting 2000 years). Aqua wandered, trapped in the dark realm for so long. Finally she was rescued, but not just her, Ansem the Wise as well.

Many people are living in darkness today, and they can see no way out. God can help you out! In Colossians 1:13 (MSG) Paul writes, "_God rescued us from dead-end alleys and dark dudgeons. He's set us up in the kingdom of the Son he loves so much, the Son who got us out of the pit we were in, got rid of the sins we were doomed to keep repeating."_

God's Son, Jesus, has already rescued us from darkness; we just have to accept it! We no longer have to live in the darkness; we are welcomed into the light!


End file.
